The Rift
by It's The Dee
Summary: When a car crash ends Kojiro's life, both he and Musashi want nothing more than to be together again. But what happens when their wish comes true?
1. Ano Kirei na Hi ni: On That Beautiful Da...

**Disclaimer:** I own Alana, and my odd ideas about a "Rift." As far as I know I own Silver Falls. The song "Hikari no Naka e" is a real Japanese song composed by Yoko Kanno and sung by Maaya Sakamoto. Everything else is TV Tokyo's.

**Rating:** PG, for some mature themes and minor swearing

**Other:** I use everyone's Japanese names, because it fit the story and sometimes I get tired of writing Meowth's accent. (_hehe_) For those of you who don't know...

Musashi - Jessie  
Kojiro - James  
Nyasu - Meowth  
Sakaki - Giovanni

I also use some Japanese words here and there, but it's nothing you _need_ to know, and I'll post a little glossary at the end of each chapter for the curious.

* * *

_**The Rift**_

**Track One: Ano Kirei na Hi ni...  
-On That Beautiful Day...-**

Musashi sat back on her sleeping bag, looking out through the window of the small cabin she and her partners currently shared. The sun was peeking through the bare boughs of the winter trees, making the spindly branches seem almost majestic; small tufts of clouds, cotton balls on the breeze, flitted across the sky; while several Onisuzume – Spearows – floated lazily through the air, on the lookout for an easy meal.

The Rocket member watched the serene beauty of the Johto Region through half-closed lids and decided she wanted to take a blow-torch to the entire thing. The sun was right in her eyes, the tree branches were scratching the top of the cabin, and Onisuzume had never been very friendly towards her. "It really would be a beautiful day," she muttered to herself, "if only I wasn't in such a bad mood."

She and Kojiro had gotten into one of their infamous fights. It wasn't anything unusual, really, but their bickering that day had been particularly heated.

"We need to get a move on and find that _Jari_-boy and his friends," Musashi had remarked, opening up her bag to pack her things back in.

"Why?" Kojiro wondered drearily, arms folded across the window ledge as he stared out at the clear spring sky. "We'll only get ourselves beaten up and 'blasted off' again." He'd sighed. "Sometimes I think we were destined to be failures."

"Oh, shut up," Musashi snapped. She didn't like thinking about their list of unsuccessful missions, and when Kojiro said that sort of thing they came to mind all too clearly. "That's half our problem: as long as we think pessimistically we'll _never_ do anything right. You have to say to yourself, 'Today is the day we catch Pikachu and get our raise.'"

Most of the time their spats would end there, but today Kojiro turned to stare at her, something between confusion and frustration etched across his face. "How long have we been thinking that way, Musashi? Three years? Four? All we've got to show for it are a lot of old injuries and some nice new ones to match them."

"Stop saying that sort of thing," Musashi growled back, whirling on her friend and bracing herself for a fight. "Persistence pays, and if we keep at it we're bound to do something right."

Kojiro snorted. "Your delusions of grandeur are nice to dream about, but they don't keep clothes on our back or food in our stomachs."

"_You're_ one to talk! Who's the one who always thinks up the plans while her partners are busy daydreaming about things we _could_ be having?"

"I do just as much work as you do - if not more - and you know it!"

"All you ever do is lose our money on rip-off 'bargains' and collect your stupid bottle caps!"

"I've only done that _twice_! _You're_ the one who's constantly wasting our paychecks on spur-of-the-moment shopping sprees and machines that don't even work! And I only collect caps as a hobby, for some fun! Don't I deserve a little happiness in this otherwise stupid and meaningless job?"

"This job is not stupid _or_ meaningless!" Musashi argued, face flushing at his jab against her beloved gang. "My mother devoted herself to Rocket Dan! Are you calling _her_ life stupid and meaningless?"

"Maybe I am. I'm sick of this stupid gang!"

"Yeah? Well I'm sick of you!"

Kojiro's face softened for a moment into a look of hurt, but then the sorrow passed and his eyes narrowed defiantly. "Then I guess I should make myself scarce, huh?"

And with that he had turned on his heel and slammed the door to their bedroom, leaving Musashi alone.

Now, thinking back to that bitter argument, she turned her eyes upward to the ceiling of the three-room cabin and sighed. "Maybe I shouldn't have said that... but he had no right to insult my mother, either! I'm glad I hurt his feelings, yeah, and I hope he's out there crying about it somewhere, too. He deserved it, after all." Even as she said it she knew she didn't mean it, but it made her nagging conscience feel better.

Closing her eyes to the sunlight drifting through the window and rolling over onto her stomach, Musashi soon dozed fitfully, trying to ignore the guilt that gnawed away at the inside of her stomach.

xxx

She awoke a couple hours later, groggily pushing herself into a sitting position and shading her eyes from the sunlight, which now poured directly into her window. "It must be about two," she concluded, standing and stretching.

Musashi opened the door to the bedroom, feeling better than she had earlier. "Kojiro, you ready to get started? I'm not mad anymore."

Nyasu was the only one to greet her, though, glancing up from a newspaper splayed out across the kitchen table. Seeing things like that, sometimes Musashi thought he was more human than _she_ was. "Kojiro isn't here. He went to the mall about ten minutes ago."

"What for? Our supplies are as stocked as we can get them with our current budget."

The cat shrugged. "When I asked him he said, 'To waste our money on some worthless rip-off bargains.' What d'you think he meant by that?"

Musashi sighed. "Only ten minutes ago?" He nodded and she rubbed at her temples. "Guess he's still mad at me, then. We had a fight earlier. Did he take the jeep?"

"Nyah, he took the motorbike."

Musashi went to the back room to throw on something other than her Rocket Dan uniform – no reason to get arrested, after all. "Then I'd better go find him. We need to get going, and if he really _does_ spend the rest of our money we could be in a lot of trouble."

"_Yana kanjii_," Nyasu muttered at the thought. "Well, good luck finding him - the mall is pretty big, you know."

"_Hai, hai_," she agreed with a backwards wave of her name. "See you in a few."

Musashi grabbed the keys and her wallet, hopped into the jeep and set off down the dirt road that led from their cabin to the highway. _'That motorcycle we picked up is a real piece of junk, it won't be able to go nearly as fast as a car,' _she mused to herself. '_And the mall is about twenty minutes away from our hideout... maybe I'll catch him before he even gets in! That'd make my job a lot easier.'_

She pulled off the dirt road about five minutes later, taking a side street up to the sweeping entrance ramp until finally she pulled into the traffic of the main road to the city. She hadn't gone very far before blinking police lights, traffic jams, and a roadblock pulled her to an undignified halt. "Hey! What's the holdup?"

Impatient as ever, the female Rocket pulled her jeep over to the side and jumped out. She weaved her way through the backed-up traffic and towards the roadblock, eyes widening as the scene came into focus. It looked like there'd been an accident with an awful lot of vehicles: a truck sat, tipped over on the side of the road, while cars, crushed to the point that they didn't even _look _like cars, lay scattered down the sloping hill and on the road itself. Her eyes whipped over the accident, and for a heart-wrenching second she wondered if Kojiro had gotten caught in this nasty wreck too.

Ignoring the block and picking her way through the ambulances and police cars, Musashi found a police officer barking out orders to a few other officers at the scene. "Excuse me, sir. Um, pardon me, but what happened?"

The man turned on her, a haggard look in his eye that said he didn't have time for questions. "The hell're you? The ambulances finally get here?" He looked her up and down and shook his head. "No, never mind. An officer out of uniform, then?"

"Yes," Musashi lied. "I saw the block and came to see if I could help out. What's going on?"

He sighed. "Some idiot drunk driver slammed into that truck. The truck went out of control – the driver'd just gotten his license, plus the roads are slick this time of year – and crashed into a couple of other cars. A damned domino effect. What a mess. We just got out here ourselves, so we haven't done much yet."

"What's the complete count of vehicles?"

"Hm," he paused to tic them off on his fingers. "The truck, four, no, five cars... oh, yeah, and some poor guy on a motorcycle. You okay? You're white as a ghost. Something wrong?"

"Where's Ko - I mean, the person on the motorcycle?" Musashi demanded.

The paramedic pointed down the hill. "He got flung pretty far off the road - he's down there, behind the truck. Why? Sound like someone you know?"

"Oh, nothing like that," she murmured. "I just, uh, know a little first-aid, and I figured he'd be the one who'd need it the most, so…" Still muttering excuses to herself, she whirled and headed for the slope, hopping the barrier and picking her way down the hill.

"Wait, _'Jou-san_! We've already gone around to check on everyone! We're helping the ones who've got a chance… first…" he trailed off, watching as she disappeared from his view, lost among the chaos and wreckage. "Oh, never mind. Maybe it'll do him good. _No one_ should be alone during a time like this, after all."

xxx

The female Rocket made her way between other vehicles, ignoring calls from police officers and the just-arriving medics. She kept her eyes on the ground and away from the cars, afraid of something she might see. Skirting a little blue sports car by a good ten feet - she could see some people inside, and they didn't look very healthy - Musashi finally spotted a hunk of metal and twisted rubber, smaller than the rest, smoking on its side almost at the bottom of the hill. Musashi scanned the area for her partner, wondering if he'd been thrown off as far as the forest... there! Her sharp blue eyes caught a flash of lavender hair peeking up from a nearby ditch, almost completely hidden by vegetation and rocks. Scrambling down the hill and ignoring the cuts and bruises inflicted on both hands and knees, Musashi slid to a stop next to her partner.

She heaved out a deep sigh, relieved to see his chest rising and falling steadily, though his breathing came out ragged, as if something was caught in his throat. As her eyes roved over his battered body, the female Rocket winced, biting back a cry of concern at the long gash ripping across his forehead, staining his hair a deep red. She ripped off part of her shirt and gingerly dabbed at the blood, not wanting to hurt him. "I can't believe they didn't even try to patch him up a little," she hissed to herself, still taking in his broken appearance. One arm lay draped across his midriff, hand pressed tightly to his stomach. Musashi could see blood seeping around the edges but didn't dare lift up his shirt to find out how bad it was. Trailing at last to his lower body, she had to fight back a gag. Were legs allowed to bend in that direction?

"N-nee, Koji? Kojiro?"

One green eye opened halfway, and a thick, confused murmur broke from the young man's throat. "Musa?"

"Hey, how are you? You gonna be good, right? Hang on for a second, I'll go get one of those medic guys and we'll get you to the hospital. Nice idea, ne, ne?" She realized she was babbling like a little kid, but couldn't help it. "Geez, I wonder why no one's come yet?"

Musashi pressed her hands to the ground, ready to push herself into a standing position, but Kojiro reached out with his free arm and grabbed at her sleeve, catching her with what must have been his last reserves of strength. "They won't come."

"Eh?" she whirled back to face him, eyes wide and frantic. "Of course they'll come, Kojiro! I'll just go remind them that you're here, and—"

"No. You don't… you don't understand," he explained, pausing every so often to rasp in a wet-sounding breath of air. "Someone… came around to everyone, you know, to see who was alive and…. who wasn't… and who might live past a couple hours. Since there's so many… so many people, they have to get the ones who have a chance… first, then they come back… for the dead or… dying… after that."

"Yeah, okay, but, but why haven't they gotten to you yet? Probably 'cause you're behind the truck, they probably forgot about you, right? The nerve, well, I'll go find someone and—"

"He said I don't have a chance in hell."

Musashi crumpled to her knees beside him, feeling something cold drop into her stomach. "He… he _what_?"

"It's a bad idea... getting into a wreck while riding… something like that." He waved a tired hand in the direction of the motorcycle. "Skidding into the truck… wasn't fatal… even taking a roll down this hill… wouldn't have killed me... it was when I got flung off and… hit that rock," he gestured towards a jagged piece of stone jutting up from the ground just a few feet away, "that I really… messed myself up."

"What's wrong? Can't they fix it? Isn't there anything...?"

"Busted some ribs, I think, but it's… whatever happened to my stomach… that got me," Kojiro said. "Even if they'd gotten me to a hospital… the moment it happened..." He choked on his words for a moment, struggled to find his breath, then finally turned his head to the side and coughed raggedly. In a daze, Musashi reached down with her stained scrap of shirt to wipe the blood from his lips, but he just gazed weakly back up at her, the clouds across his eyes thickening by the minute. "Anyway… I don't have a chance in hell."

"Oh," she managed to choke out. "I… I see. Do you need...?" she trailed off, remembering the bag that she'd brought from the cabin, still looped across her shoulders. Musashi slung it off and dug around until she produced a bottle of water. "Want some?"

He nodded and Musashi reached behind him with one hand, gently propping his head up in her lap while she held the bottle to his lips. Kojiro managed to choke down a few small swallows, then looked up to her, smiling weakly. "Thanks, Musa. I'm glad you're here. I couldn't have stood it… being alone, when I—"

"Yeah, right, no problem," she interrupted, blinking her eyes hurriedly. "Does it… does it really hurt?"

"A little, but… it's not as bad as it was, at first. It's sort of… sort of numb, now, I guess."

"Are _you_ all right?"

For a second she saw true terror in his pale face. "I'm a little scared," he admitted.

Musashi nodded. "Is there anything I can do? To – to help, or something?"

His reply came out in a frightened, weak whisper. "Do you think... do you think you could just hold my hand?"

Musashi's fingers curled around his own, giving them a quick, reassuring squeeze. He closed his eyes tightly, fighting for another deep, bubbling breath, then opened them again, though he couldn't meet her gaze this time. "I lied," he said after a moment, and Musashi felt her insides twist into a knot at the quavering sound on the edge of his voice, and the faint line of tears rimming his misted green eyes, once so bright and full of energy. "I'm really scared. I want to be tough but I can't when I'm this terrified."

"I know," she agreed, forcing strength into a voice that wanted to break. "I'm here though, so you don't have to be tough. I'll be the strong one, Koji-chan."

He smiled a little. "You haven't called me that since… we were kids." Kojiro's half-closed eyes turned upwards, watching the wisps of clouds dart in and out of the tree branches. "You know… it really is a beautiful day."

Musashi followed his gaze into the sky, nodding in silent agreement. Thinking back to their fight from earlier, she felt a sudden, almost overwhelming urge to blurt out an apology, to try and make things better in these last, awful moments. She tried to get the words out, but every attempt got caught in her throat, so that she knew she couldn't possibly speak without crying. And if she started crying, then Kojiro was going to lose it. She had to be the tough one, which meant no tears... and without tears there could be no words, no apologies or final farewells, not even an "It'll be all right." So there was nothing.

Musashi blinked and came back to reality with a jerk as she felt the fingers grasped in hers suddenly weaken their hold. "Oi, Kojiro?" she called, glancing back down into her friend's clouded, half-open eyes and squeezing at his limp hand. "Koji—" She stopped short, the words stuck in her throat as she realized that his skin had grown too pale, his body too limp beneath her…

"No." Musashi dropped her hands from his and grabbed him by the shoulders, shaking him in a panic and shouting out his name again and again, voice growing more frightened and desperate with each call. But no matter what she said or did he offered her no answer, no smile, not even a twitch of understanding. And then, finally, with their foreheads pressed together, hers drenched with sweat and his with blood, she stared into those half-open, clouded green eyes, and realized with a sharp twist of her stomach that he wasn't looking at her. He wasn't looking at anything. And he wouldn't. Not now. Not ever again.

Musashi pushed herself away from the body, clapping a hand to her mouth as she felt her insides heave upwards. She fought to keep herself from retching, instead pounding a hand into the ground and swearing between heaving, panicky breaths. Her eyes clouded with tears and she stopped suddenly, fists clenching at her sides.

_'No,'_ some stubborn, rational part of her remembered. '_You can't cry. You've got to be strong, Musashi.'_

She blinked hurriedly. That was right. She couldn't break down. She'd promised Kojiro. She glanced back towards him, hands gentle as she reached forward to slowly, slowly close his dead eyes to the brilliant blue sky, to the dazzling sunlight, and to the tight-lipped, trembling young woman bent over him, dry-eyed until the very end.

xxx

"Are you sure you want to do this, Musashi?" Nyasu asked for the twelfth time.

A week had passed since the small funeral of their deceased partner and friend. Musashi and Nyasu sat at a table in the local library, a 3D globe of the earth on the computer screen before them.

Musashi didn't even glance at her companion. "I'm sure."

"Positive? 'Cause if you don't really want to then we don't have to..."

"Just hit the button, Nyasu," she interrupted, though not in her usual snappish way. Her tired eyes met his for a moment, and the cat knew her mind had been made up. There was no use trying to argue with Musashi, especially at a time like this.

Nyasu clicked the mouse once and the globe began spinning on the screen. "Now," he said more to himself than his friend, clicking randomly at a spot. The globe stopped immediately, highlighting the spot he had clicked with a bright red dot. "Looks like it landed somewhere overseas. In America."

"America?" Musashi repeated, turning to look over his shoulder at the screen.

"_Hai_," he agreed, zooming in on the exact spot. "Stroke of luck, really. English is the only other language I know well enough to get around..." He read the name of the town closest to where the highlight was. "Silver Falls, Colorado." He clicked for a description. "A small mountain town with a rich historical past and many turn-of-the-century homes." Nyasu managed a chuckle. "No 'Silver Falls,' though."

Musashi nodded. "Then that's that, I s'pose."

"Are you _sure_ you want to do this...?"

The female Rocket stood, heading for the exit. "Come on, Nyasu. The hardest part comes next."

"_Yana kanjii_," he muttered, exiting the program and padding after his friend.

xxx

Sakaki looked down at the papers Musashi had pushed in front of him. "What's this?"

"My resignation, Boss."

He raised an eyebrow. "Resignation?"

She nodded, keeping her eyes on the floor. "Yes, Boss. I'm sorry, but Nyasu and I are quitting the team."

"You're certain about this?" he asked skeptically. "I wouldn't have expected such a fast decision. It seems so sudden."

"So was Kojiro's death," Musashi said quietly.

Sakaki scowled, but nodded in understanding. "I thought that might be it. There's nothing worse than seeing a Team member... well..." He coughed, unsure how to continue, so instead just said, "Do you know what you'll be doing, now?"

"Not exactly, Boss. Not at all, actually," she admitted. "I suppose once we get to our destination I'll find a job."

"Where will you go?"

"Silver Falls, Colorado, in America. Nyasu... it was something of a random choice, you see," Musashi explained.

Sakaki's eyes widened. "It seems like an awfully long way from home. If it's a matter of finding an apartment in the area, then I'm sure I could do something—"

Her head shook quickly. "Thank you for your kindness, Boss, but it's nothing like that. I just... I need some time to myself, some time to think... reflect a little. Start over. And to do that, I need to go some place where my record isn't going to haunt me. Some place where nobody's even heard of Rocket Dan."

_'Or Kojiro,'_ Sakaki finished silently to himself. "I hate to see you ago," he said, though he himself couldn't decide if that was a lie or not, "but if that's your choice then there's nothing left to say." He coughed awkwardly. "Do you need anything? Is there something I can do to help? As members of my organization, it's only fair that I ask, of course."

Nyasu at last spoke up. "Actually, Boss Rocket, I was wondering if... well..." he rubbed his paws together timidly. "Silver Falls is a long distance, and traveling isn't cheap... I'd hate to ask too much of you, sir, but if we could get one last paycheck, perhaps, or... er…"

Sakaki grunted unhappily. "Money, is it?" They nodded miserably. "A donation to a team that's never put a yen in my pocket?" They nodded again, even more miserably than before. Sakaki scowled and opened his mouth for a strong reply, but stopped at the last moment. He knew the past week had been hard on them, and this decision to leave home would be even harder. And even if they had been essentially incompetent, they hadn't exactly _hurt_ the organization, either. No. They didn't deserve to have another door slammed in their faces. "Very well. How much do you need?"

Musashi jerked up like she'd been prodded with a hot poker. "Eh?"

"How much do you need?" he repeated. "I'd say airfare plus a bus, and your first month's rent…" He flipped open his checkbook and scribbled out an appropriate sum, flashing it at the female Rocket. "Will that suffice?"

Her eyes widened, and for the first time since Kojiro's death she actually looked hopeful again. "Yes, I'm sure it would. _Doumo arigatou gozaimashita_! But, why—?"

"I'm not _heartless_, you know," he reminded her, ripping out the check and shoving it into her hands. "And, in light of the recent events... it just seems appropriate." He scowled. "And it isn't as if I can't earn this money back again in another day."

"Of course, Boss. Again, I really can't thank you enough."

He waved her compliment away, watching as both she and Nyasu bowed low before turning to exit the room. At the last moment he frowned and called after her, "Oh, and Musashi?"

She glanced back at him. "Boss?"

He hesitated; it'd been a while since he'd felt sympathy. "I'm sorry for your losses. Kojiro... Kojiro was a good man. It's a shame the world had to lose him."

"Not so much the world as I," she whispered quietly. "Thank you again, Boss. I won't forget this. If I can ever pay you back..."

He cut her off with another sharp scowl. "You just happened to be lucky that you came in on a particularly good day. Best of luck, Musashi."

She bowed again and darted out of the door, closing it with a soft click behind her. Nyasu sighed. "That's it, then."

Musashi looked around at the inner courtyard of the Rocket Dan Boss' home – the headquarters she'd known for so long... but no, she thought with a shake of her head. It was just a building. Just another cold, meaningless building. It meant nothing without a partner, without Kojiro. Her eyes stung suddenly with tears.

Nyasu pressed a paw to her leg. "Musashi..."

She squared her shoulders. She had to be strong. She'd promised him. "Come on, Nyasu. With a bit of luck we may be able to catch a plane today."

xxx

_Where am I? I can't see anything. It's so dark, are my eyes even open? Yes, they must be; there's a pinion of light in the distance, but it's so small it could be my imagination. It doesn't _seem_ like a dream. Where am I? Could it be the hospital, did they manage to save me? No, that can't be it. There's no pain. That's a plus, anyway. It hurt so bad, not that I could tell Musashi that and let her worry... Musashi! Where's Musashi? Am I sleeping while she's so concerned about me? Can I wake up? Is it a dream? Where is she? Where am I? _

_**Don't you know?**_

_Huh? Know what? Who're you? _Where_ are you? And where am I?_

_**You don't know, then? Strange, can't you remember?**_

_I remember a crash. I remember pain, unbearable pain. And fear. And I remember Musashi, and her warm hand. It gave me courage. I remember a haze. Then numbness. Now this... blackness. Where am I?_

_**You are in the place that is no place at all. A land where time stands still, the day never comes, yet no stars or moon shine. You are in the world between worlds, the Bridge between lands. In short, you are in what is called The Rift.**_

_The Rift? What's that? And what are you?_

_**The Rift is the place between Life... and Death. I am its Keeper, the Overseer of this blank space**_

_Why can't I see you? It's disturbing, talking to a voice without an owner. Oh, there you are. Funny, but you look like a human. I suppose I always thought Divine Beings would seem different_

_**I have no real shape. I merely took this form because I knew it would be most comforting for you. Now, do you understand what is going on? No, I can see by your look that you do not. Questions?**_

_How... how did I get here? I almost don't want to know, but I'll go crazy if I don't find out._

_**You died.**_

_What? I died! Are you sure? Is it possible that I'm just hanging on the edge of life, that I still have a chance? _

_**There are only two ways to pass into the Rift. One is through one of the few, shall we say, 'glitches' that can be found in certain places around the world. The other is death. You entered through a path very different from the glitch roads. One must assume you are dead.**_

_Dead? No! I can't be dead! I don't want to be dead! I'm not even twenty-five yet! And – and Musashi didn't want me to die! If I'm dead, I'll bring her pain. I don't want to hurt Musashi! _

_**Why are you crying? Your troubles are over. There's no pain once you pass through the Gates. If you only follow that point of light, you'll find that there's nothing to cry about. Sorrow couldn't possibly be felt. Why aren't you happy? Don't you want eternal life and happiness?**_

_No! I don't want eternal anything! All I want is to be back with Musashi! _

_**To be with this Musashi... would that make you happy? Would it stop you from sobbing like that?**_

_Yes, yes! As long as I'm with her I can never be truly miserable. If I could just be with her, hold her hand, make a joke... that's all I'd ever need in life. _

_**Or death?**_

_Or death._

_**...Very well, then. If that's the way you feel.**_

_Huh? What do you mean? _

_**I am the Keeper of the Rift, but I have other duties. It's my job to see that those who make it to the Gates are given what would truly make them happy. If being with Musashi is all you want, then it can be granted.**_

_How? Can you take me back to earth? Can I actually be with Musashi? It isn't too late?_

_**It's never too late, given the right technique.**_

_Technique? What if they've already cremated me? How do you do it?_

_**I have my ways. Rest for now. Before long you'll be back with this woman you hold so dear.**_

_Rest? Funny, but I don't feel in the least bit tired. Does a soul get tired? What? Where are you going? The darkness is getting blacker... don't leave! It's so lonely, so quiet here... the silence is almost unbearable. Hm? I feel like I'm fading out... Hey! What's this? Even the darkness seems to be getting fuzzy. I feel disconnected from everything... Oh, Musashi... _

* * *

**Japanese Glossary:  
**Jari-boy: "Brat-boy," the term that Musashi and Kojiro use to refer to Satoshi/Ash. The English translation is "twerp."  
Yani kanjii: literally "bad feeling;" it's what the trio shouts when they get "blasted off again."  
Hai: "Yes," "okay," "sure"  
'Jou-san: Literally "daughter," but it's also used to refer to women younger than oneself, so you can translate it as "miss"  
Doumo arigatou gozaimashita: "Thank you so very much"


	2. Giniro no Negai: Silver Wish

**Disclaimer:** I own Alana, and my odd ideas about a "Rift." As far as I know I own Silver Falls. The song "Hikari no Naka e" is a real Japanese song composed by Yoko Kanno and sung by Maaya Sakamoto. Everything else is TV Tokyo's.

**Rating:** PG, for some mature themes and minor swearing

* * *

**Track Two: Gin-iro no Negai  
-Silver Wish-**

Nyasu stared out the window of the bus leading to Silver Falls. His eyes roved over the landscape, from the tall, snow-capped mountains to the pleasant pine trees dotting the road. Even though it was already April, he found snow greeting him at every turn: on the branches of the trees, the tips of the mountains, drifting through the air, and lying in a soft layer on the ground. "Look at this place. It's gorgeous. Lots of snow, too, Musashi, I know how much you love snow."

Musashi sat behind her friend, arms draped over the seat. She followed his gaze, nodding drearily. Under normal circumstances, she would have been overjoyed at this winter paradise; a person could get lost in the brutal beauty of it all. Unfortunately, these were no normal circumstances. "It's all right."

"All right? This is the sort of weather you _love_."

"It's nice, Nyasu," she admitted with a sigh. "But there'll be no cherry blossoms in the spring, no Star Festival, no Girls' Day." No Kojiro.

Nyasu gave it up as a hopeless fight and went back to reading his pamphlet on Silver Falls. "Hm... lots of historical hotels up here, I bet we can get a job at one of them. Sounds like they get quite a few tourists year-round, too. Oh, and look at this, there's a Japanese steakhouse not too far from main street. Lucky us, ne?"

"Fantastic."

"Can't you at least _pretend_ to be excited? It was your idea to come here," Nyasu said irritably. He knew the past month had been hard on his partner – it'd been tough on him, too – but she hadn't even made an attempt to put an optimistic spin on the whole mess.

"_Gomen_, Nyasu. It's jet-lag," Musashi lied. With another sigh she pulled out her CD player, deciding to lose herself in the sweet vocals of Sakamoto Maaya.

"_If I let go of your hand clasped in mine,  
With that, it would all probably come to an end right now."_

Musashi flicked quickly to the next song - normally she would have loved the slow, beautiful words of "Hikari no Naka e," but it was just much too sad at a time like this. Remembering that a lot of Sakamoto's songs felt like that, she quickly changed CDs and allowed the more upbeat Shiina Ringo to bring her in to Silver Falls.

"Silver Falls, if you're stayin' this is your stop!" the driver called.

Nearly half the passengers stood to leave, Musashi and Nyasu among them. Grabbing their few bags and stepping down, the pair looked around, taking in the scenery. The streets were old-fashioned, made of cobbled stone in many places, with small, brick buildings containing stores and businesses lining the main road. The few people who were out and about strolled down the lane as if they didn't have a care in the world. Chatting amiably in English - which both Nyasu and Musashi spoke moderately well - they walked on to their destinations in the same slow, even way that they spoke. The entire town spoke of relaxation and quiet, of little hurry and little speed. You'd get to where you wanted to be eventually, right?

"This seems like a good place to heal some wounds," Nyasu thought aloud. He tapped Musashi on the knee. "Headphones off. We need to find a place to stay for the night."

The ex-Rocket flipped the CD off halfway through "Identity" and followed her feline companion as he made his way down the main street.

They hadn't gone far before an old, rustic hotel caught Musashi's eye at once. She wasn't sure what about the old building had caught her attention - it wasn't much different from two or three they had already passed - but she felt drawn to it, somehow. Before she could stop herself she trailed over to the window, pointing up at the sign swinging above the door. "Say, Nyasu, why not stay here for the night?"

The cat read the carved plaque slowly. "Spirit Inn. Funny name. Why this place?"

"I'm not completely sure. I just like it for some reason." Musashi ran a hand along the polished metal gate. "What do you suppose they mean by 'Spirit'?" She pronounced the English word "Supirito."

He shrugged. "I suppose it could be a place to raise your spirits - how you feel about things and all - or, it might be one of those famous old haunted hotels."

She smiled sarcastically. "Yeah, right."

Nyasu pointed to a line in the pamphlet. "I'm not kidding. See here? Oh, I'll translate it for you, my English is better. It says _'Silver Falls is also home to some alleged haunted buildings, including an inn and a tavern_'- that's like a bar. Maybe it's just a publicity stunt, but sometimes these stories have truth behind them." His eyes widened as he glanced down and noticed a _Help Wanted_ sign in the window. "Hey, and a job, too! Good luck for us, ne? Want to check it out?"

Musashi was already heading up the steps. Pulling open the door, she stepped quietly inside, glancing around. The main room had a low-ceiling propped up by wooden support beams that speckled the small enclosure. The shined wooden floors looked in good condition, and the flames burning low in the fireplace gave the building an immediate homey touch. "Hel'ro?" Musashi called in her thick Japanese accent. "Is anyone here?"

The ex-Rocket jumped as a head popped up behind the counter. "Ah, customers! Welcome to the Spirit Inn, home to seven ghostly spirits and countless wandering souls. How may I help you?"

Musashi blinked, trying to process the rapid-fire English. "Uh, we would like room for the night, please." Nyasu elbowed her. "Oh… actually, I saw your help wanted sign in window and wanted to apply."

The woman's face broke into a smile. "Wonderful! An applicant and it's only my first day with the offer! You must have just gotten into town, from..." she paused, cocking her head to the side and smiled tentatively. "Japan, I'm guessing?"

Musashi managed a small, embarrassed smile. "Is my accent very bad?"

"I've heard worse," she said with a chuckle. "Hm, let's see, how do you want to go about this? Do you have any credentials with you?"

Nyasu rummaged in his friend's bag until he pulled out their identification cards and green cards. "Will this help?"

The woman gave the cat a warm grin. "Mm, _arigatou_." The two ex-Rockets exchanged looks of surprise and delight. "Hm..." she gave everything a once over, then glanced up with a smile. "Sounds good," she said in almost perfect Japanese. "Can you cook, clean, keep the books, be friendly to customers?"

"Not the cooking part," Musashi said a little sheepishly in the same language. "I'm okay with numbers, though - at least they're the same in English and Japanese."

"Makes life a bit easier, doesn't it?" she said, switching back to her native language. "Hope you don't mind if I stick to this. I know Japanese all right but the rolling R's get stuck on my tongue sometimes."

Nyasu laughed and said it was fine. "So, do you think Musashi can get the job?"

"One moment..." the woman shot off several questions that Musashi answered to the best of her ability, still fighting to get her pronunciations right and keep up with the inner translations, until at last the hotel owner nodded and smiled again. "Hm, hm... yes, everything looks to be in good order... Miss Kawamura, I think it's safe to say you're hired."

Musashi bowed hurriedly. "Thank you, and please, call me Musashi."

She smiled warmly again. "Musashi, then. You can call me Alana. I'm the owner of the hotel and in desperate need of an extra hand, especially during the busy months. Welcome to the small Spirit Team."

Musashi and Nyasu both blinked at the name. _'From one team to another,'_ Musashi thought dryly. "Thank you, Miss Alana," she said, though it came out sounding more like "Al'rana." She frowned - what was it with English and it's damn L's and R's? Wasn't one mixed sound enough to cover for both?

Alana laughed. "Don't worry, you'll catch on. Would you like me to show you to your room? There's a nice room on the second floor that would be perfect for my partner in business."

Musashi nodded, and followed her new employer to an odd-looking elevator in the corner of the room. She watched with a skeptical eye as Alana opened the doors manually, then unlatched the inner gate and stepped inside. "Excuse me, Miss Alana, but… is this safe?"

"It's been around practically since the hotel was built," Alana said with a dangerous smirk. "But it's safe enough."

Musashi stepped in, watching as Alana hit the button labeled "two" and the elevator began moving. Glancing around, her eyes caught something that puzzled her. "Miss Alana?"

"Just Alana is fine."

It seemed odd to be on first-name terms with your boss and not use some sort of prefix or suffix, but that was part of America, or so she'd heard. _When it Rome…, _as the saying went. "Alana, then. That thing above elevator - that thing that tells what floor you are on... I don't know its name..."

"Mostly I just call it 'that thing that tells you what floor the elevator is on,'" Alana said with a laugh. "What about it?"

"There is – uh, _are_ – four floors. But on the button here, there are just three..." she noticed a spot that had been covered in duct tape. "Is that to the fourth floor?" Alana nodded and Musashi frowned. "Why is it covered?"

"The hotel only has three floors," Nyasu reminded her. "When we were coming in I noticed that." He paused. "Seems odd to install four buttons..."

"You mean you didn't read up on Spirit Inn before you got here?" Two headshakes. "Then I guess I'll have to tell you the story, won't I?"

Musashi and Nyasu watched as Alana's eyes seemed to nearly glaze over and her voice took on a quiet, lower note. "Once, there were four floors at this hotel. This was way back, when the elevator had just been installed. The guests on the fourth floor were a very happy, carefree group of three families, seven people in all. They loved to throw parties of all sorts, no matter what the season was. It led to their undoing. One day the seven were having an unusually loud shindig - er, it's an old slang word for a party - when one of the men accidentally tossed his cigarette into the trashcan before it was completely out. The fire began in the kitchen, where few people were at the time, and once it was noticed it was too late for the poor fools.

"The fire department managed to save the rest of the hotel, but the three families and the fourth floor were gone. Burned to death amidst their own happiness, some still singing drunkenly as they went down." Nyasu and Musashi shuddered. "The owner at the time didn't have enough money to build the floor back, so he just cleaned out the mess, built a new roof, and taped up the fourth floor button."

"So, what happen if you press it?" Musashi wondered.

Alana shrugged. "Probably nothing. I'm sure it's been disabled. It's one of our big tourist attractions, though, so we keep the tape over the button for dramatic effect."

"Do the families really haunt the inn?" Nyasu asked.

"More than just the families," she answered with a mysterious smile. "Because of their hospitality and good-nature, the fourth floor is said to be a haven for the lost souls who can't find their way to the Gates. Many people think that the seven decided to stay on earth as spirits forever, guiding those who had lost their way on to the afterlife." She finally stepped out of the elevator, which had sat on the second floor for quite some time now.

"Do you believe it?" Musashi asked.

Alana nodded. "Absolutely. Once in a while I'll find things out of place, or feel a slight breeze at my back, or see a shape of a person that shouldn't be there. Sometimes at night - especially if you're on the third floor - you can hear the faint sounds of music and laughter from upstairs."

Nyasu's eyes lit up, though it was hard to tell if it was from excitement or fear. "Do you think _we'll_ get a glimpse of them?"

Alana chuckled at his eagerness. "Perhaps. You never know, but they usually only toy around with the owner of the inn - visitors will occasionally hear the parties on the fourth, but there's really only one thing that's reported a lot..." Musashi and Nyasu both leaned forward, eyes wide and mouths parted halfway, completely hooked by the story. Alana went on. "I've had more than half the guests tell me that, late in the evening, if they've been hanging out in the lounge, they'll see a tabby Meowth - er, Nyasu, I suppose to you - pad across the wooden floor. Some have heard her meow, and others have even been lucky enough to pet the phantom beast. She always disappears up the elevator, as if by some unseen force..." she paused again for another of her enigmatic smiles. "The Johnsons had a tabby Meowth."

A long silence descended on the hallway. Then Musashi broke in, "This is our room?" She pointed to the door they'd been standing in front of for a while.

Alana blinked as if to shake herself out of her storytelling phase, reverting back to her usual self. "Oh! So it is! Here," she fumbled with a set of keys, then handed one to the former Rocket. "That should be right." The key turned in the lock and Alana wiped a hand across her brow in mock relief. "Good, I don't have to keep searching. Well, I'll come in with you, show you around - it's quite spacious for what looks like a small room, isn't it? - and help you get unpacked. Then, if you'd like, I can give you a tour of the town. I rarely get customers at this time of the year, so it wouldn't be a problem. Sound like a good idea?"

Musashi's face broke into a quick, small smile - around this woman's cheerful personality it was impossible to feel too miserable. "I'd really like that. _Ariga – _er, thank you."

"_Iie. Yorokonde_."

xxx

Musashi and Nyasu soon found the tiny town of Silver Falls to their immense liking, and took just as swiftly to both their new life and new boss. She was almost an exact opposite from their previous, untouchable superior, which made the two even more grateful for her kind nature and generous ways.

"Oh? You're going out to dinner? Here, take some cash. I know I don't pay you nearly enough for you to go to one of the really nice places."

"Not feeling well, Musashi? Don't worry, I know what it's like to be a little down sometimes. Go on upstairs or sit on the couch and get some rest. I'll take over. There isn't much business today as it is."

"I have to head out for the evening, so keep an eye on things, please. If you get tired of just sitting around, feel free to lock the front door and go on upstairs. I've got a key, and if there's business this late it can wait."

Yes, Spirit Inn was just the thing the two needed to get back on their feet and patch up their old wounds.

There was only one thing still bothering Musashi: the hotel's fourth floor. For some reason, every time she got into the elevator she had an impulse to jam her finger on the taped fourth button. "I know it won't do anything," she had told Alana, her English improving by the day, "but my curiosity to see what it _does_ do is starting to… 'get to me,' isn't that the phrase?" Her employer nodded and she returned the head-bob. "Yes. It's starting to get to me, I think."

Alana laughed, as was her custom. "Oh, don't worry about it. Plenty of people say that. I even had the urge for a while."

"Well if it doesn't work, then can I just give it a push, to help my curiosity?"

"No, most certainly not!" Alana tone become so serious so suddenly that Musashi jumped a little in her seat. "I've never pressed it myself, but I've heard some awful rumors that the elevator leads to someplace... unknown. A place without a place. I don't understand the stories much myself, but it's nowhere any of _us_ want to go."

"Sounds like an old ghost story to me," Musashi muttered.

"Maybe, but maybe not. I'd keep away from it if I were you. In fact, as your boss I directly order you not to mess around with things you don't understand. The urge'll pass in a few more weeks, I'm sure." She smiled again. "Oh, I only just now noticed that you'd put on one of your Japanese CDs. It sounds nice coming out of the speakers in the lobby. What song is this?"

Musashi listened to the faint sound of Sakamoto Maaya's "Hikari no Naka e":

"_The treasure of memories that we've made  
will always live on deep inside my heart."_

She hurried over to the player and switched to the next track. "Never mind, it isn't a very good song. Too slow, too sad, if you understand. Brings back bad memories."

Alana frowned. "What sort of bad memories?"

"A... a friend I had back in Japan," Musashi hesitated, glancing down and twisting her hands in her shirt. "There was this accident... well, anyway, Kojiro's dead now, so there's no reason to think about it anymore."

Alana's head jerked up at the name "Kojiro," though Musashi had no idea why. She nodded again, this time sympathetically. "I'm sorry about that."

Musashi tried a smile that fell short. "Well, at least I know he's in a better place, right?"

The hotel owner had an odd, thoughtful look on her face. "Hm. Yes. Soon, with a bit of luck, anyway." She looked up at her friend and partner. "Oh, ignore me, I was thinking of something from a few weeks ago. I'm sorry, I completely zoned out there for a moment. Did you want to talk about him at all?"

"Not really, Mis - er, Alana. Thanks you, though."

"No problem. Don't hesitate to talk to me if you need a listening ear."

_'Yeah, that'll happen,'_ Musashi thought sarcastically, though out loud all she said was, "I'll keep that in mind."

xxx

Over a month's time had passed since the two ex-Rockets had arrived in Silver Falls, and the seemingly endless Colorado winter had at last faded into a short, peaceful spring. It was on a night during one of these warm, wet weeks that Alana assigned Musashi to the late shift.

"I hate to do this to you, but customers start coming in as soon as the snow melts. We need to have people watching the door until at least ten o'clock. You don't mind?"

"No, of course not. It'll give me some time to myself. I could use a bit of that."

So, here she was, working over a few bills at nine in the evening. Musashi sat up, cracked her back and yawned, speaking to herself in Japanese for one of the first times in a long time. "Hm, I'm not usually this tired. I was up a bit later than usual last night."

Tuesdays were always bad nights for Musashi, no matter what the week. Kojiro had died on a Tuesday, and it always brought back the memories and feelings of guilt stronger than usual. Musashi sighed, bending over her papers and yawning again. "Why can't I just move on? I still miss you so much, Koji..."

She must have fallen asleep, for the next thing she remembered it was almost ten and the books still weren't finished. "_Shimatta_," she grumbled to herself, rubbing at her temples. "Alana's gonna kill me. Maybe with luck she won't find out... ugh, but I'm exhausted... and there are still _so_ many forms left."

"Myao."

Musashi looked up, jumping in surprise. A small, tabby Nyasu stood in front of the counter, looking up at her and mewing sweetly. She smiled and knelt down, bidding the animal to draw closer. "Hello there. Who're you? How in the world did you get in here?"

"Myao," she said again, trotting up daintily and rubbing her head along Musashi's open palm.

"Friendly little thing, aren't you? Sometimes I with Nyasu was more like this." The cat mewed again, clambering into her lap and rubbing its head along her chin. Musashi chuckled. "You really know how to make a person feel loved, don't you? This is just what I needed to cheer me up a little. Sometimes I get so lonely, what with Alana off on errands and Nyasu with his own job..." She sighed unhappily. "I never used to get lonely, you know, but that seems like an awfully long time ago."

The little animal in her lap paused suddenly, looking back towards the front door. "Myao?" She scrambled out of Musashi's lap, heading towards the elevator.

"Hey, don't leave! Please come back, you really made me feel a lot better." Musashi shivered as a chill breeze seemed to pass by. She blinked, rubbing hard at her eyes. It _looked_ like two human shapes, shadow-like to her bewildered eyes, were standing next to the Nyasu. The Pokemon certainly looked up happily at _someone_, she thought in a daze. One, a female by the looks of her long brown hair, moved and disappeared as quickly as she had come. Then the other, a male by stature...

Musashi's hand flew to her mouth and she had to sit down hard on the edge of the desk. The second figure vanished in an instant – as did the Nyasu – but had she... had she seen a flash of lavender hair?

_'I'm dreaming,'_ she insisted, not daring to speak out loud. _'The phantom cat, the ghosts, the breezes... no, those are just stories. They can't be real... and that guy, well, even if I'm not dreaming, then _that_ had to be a trick of my eyes. It had to be. Of course it wasn't—'_

Her frantic thoughts trailed away as she watched the floor meter click slowly upwards. Strange, how could someone be riding the elevator? Unless... she gulped and gasped, clasping a hand to her mouth when the meter had reached up to the fourth floor. "What in the world is going on?" she murmured between her fingers. "I must be dreaming. I _have_ to be..."

Hands trembling, she reached out and pressed the button for the elevator to return to the ground floor. In moments the light above the door flickered on, and she reached forward, pushing back the heavy doors. She stepped in and glanced around, but the elevator seemed perfectly normal. Her hand roved over the fourth button, feeling the edge curiously, but then she shook her head and she pushed the one for the second floor. "I need to get some sleep, in my own bed. Alana will understand. Those apparitions can really shake a person up."

The doors opened onto the second floor. She could see the door to her apartment at the end of the hall; a warm bed and safety would be waiting for her there. She'd go to bed, and wake up, and things would be as they should...

Musashi's finger slammed down on the fourth floor button. "Safety is fine, but I'll drive myself insane if I don't find out once and for all." The elevator moved. Not just moved - moved up! "It'll probably drop me off at the third floor..." she mused aloud.

The elevator shook a little. _'Huh? What's going on? Will it actually take me to the area under the roof? Or maybe to that place Alana mentioned once..._' The doors rattled once, then popped open on their own, revealing a seemingly endless expanse of pitch darkness. Musashi tried to peer through the impenetrable blackness, but saw nothing. The smart thing to do would be hit the second floor button – she'd seen what she wanted to see, and the sight terrified her enough already. "But if I don't find out what's past this darkness, I'll never be able to rest. I may not have another chance where I'm brave enough. Well, Musashi, here it goes. _Yana kanji_!"

She stepped out into the dead air, and was immediately consumed by shadows.

xxx

**Hm? Where am I? This place is darker than anything I've ever seen... so quiet, too. Isn't there anyone else here?**

_**What are you doing here?**_

**Oh, someone else! Thank God, a person could lose their mind in this murky world. Can you tell me where we are? Do you know?**

_**Of course I know. I am the Keeper of this place, am I not?**_

**You are? Oh, well, that's certainly a good thing. Where am I?**

_**You are in the place that is no ****place ****at all. A land where time stands still, the day never comes, yet no stars or moon shine. You are in the world between worlds, the Bridge between lands. In short, you are in what is called The Rift, the Rift between life and death.**_

**That doesn't sound very promising. How did I get here?**

_**That's what I would like to know. You certainly aren't dead... Ah, I see now. You entered through one of the glitches; the one in Colorado, correct?**_

**The last thing I remember was stepping out of an elevator into this. I was in Colorado at the time, yes. What's a... a glitch?**

_**It's a place where time and space ****have ****been damaged. It can take a living person into the Rift. Thankfully, there are only seven in the world. I'll have to talk to the Watcher of the Spirit Glitch; this is the third person she's allowed into the Rift. What a nuisance it all is.**_

**I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cause you any trouble, uh... oh, there you are. You're human? Well, that works for me. If you'd like, I suppose I can just go back home. Oh, where'd that stupid elevator go? I could have sworn it was behind me, but of course I can't see anything in this mess. Can't you light the place up a bit? Never mind, just get me back home.**

_**Is there anything you would like before you leave?**_

**Hm? What do you mean?**

_**Those who enter the Rift - through glitches or death - well, it happens to be a very powerful law that I do what I can to grant them happiness. Originally, it was only meant for the dead who had made it to the Gates, but what with these damned glitches... So, what would make you a truly happy person?**_

**Truly happy? Hm, good question. I haven't been truly happy in so long, the nearest thing to it was when...**

_**I can see you've thought of something. Go ahead. Don't be afraid. It is useless to try and hide your thoughts in this place, anyway.**_

**Oh, but what's the use? The one thing that would make me happy would be to have Kojiro back, but that's impossible. Kojiro's dead, I was there, I saw it myself. There's nothing besides that. You may as well just send me home.**

_**... Kojiro? Hm, a dead man, Kojiro...**_

**Why are you smiling? Your smile is actually kind of scary. What's so funny?**

_**Nothing for you to worry about. I can give you what you desire.**_

**How? There's no way you could to that. Kojiro's been gone for... well, it seems like an awfully long time, that's for sure.**

_**I have my methods. Rest for now. You'll soon have what you need to be happy.**_

**What!? Hey, where are you going!? Don't I at least get a few answers!? How can you bring back a dead man? Wait! Can't you stay? Oh, he's gone, and now it's just me with this empty darkness again. I wish there was someone to talk to, even that impossible Keeper. Hm, what's this? I feel all hazy. Could he really bring Kojiro back? I wonder...**

xxx

Musashi opened her eyes just in time to hear the lobby clock chime ten. The ex-Rocket sat up with a yawn and cracked her back. Remembering all that had happened, she came fully awake with a start, glancing around.

"Was it... could it have all been a dream? It seemed so real, though, especially that horrible world of shadows." She sighed, looking down at her books. _'I knew I missed Kojiro, but I didn't know it was to the point of having strange dreams about him.'_

"Musashi?"

The former Rocket's body stiffened. That voice... she knew it... knew it _so_ well... but, but it couldn't be...

"Musashi!"

She couldn't look up. If she did, she'd find out it was just her imagination, and that would be even worse. Because it sounded so _real_...

"Musashi," he said, louder now, as if he'd been moving towards her. "C'mon, Musashi, won't you even look at me?"

At the request her head came up, slowly and reluctantly, pulled as if by some unseen force. If it wasn't real... but what if it was? Would that be worse, or better? _'I don't want to know, I just want to wake up from this!'_

She looked into a pair of green eyes and nearly burst into tears. "Kojiro?"

"Musashi! I'm so glad I found you! I've been looking for you for so long!"

"What—?" she tried to stand up, but her legs turned to jelly and she had to sit down hard.

"Don't bother asking, I'll explain everything." She could only nod numbly, too weak with shock to say anything. "When I got back from the mall and found both you and Nyasu gone, I knew right away that I had to find you and apologize. I felt so horrible about insulting your mother like that! I went to Boss Sakaki to ask if he knew where the two of you were, and he told me you'd _quit_ Team Rocket and gone to some town in America – Silver Falls, Colorado, he said. It took me a long time to work up the money to get a plane ticket, and get my passport and everything, but I finally made it over a couple days ago. It's so weird, you and I picking the same hotel!" He grabbed her hands, bowing his head in shame. "Musashi, I'm sorry I said that about your mother. I had no right, and you had every right to yell at me." He looked up with a hopeful smile. "Let's never fight again, okay?"

She said nothing for a long moment, but just stared up into that familiar face, and tried to get the world to make sense. Had her dream... had it been reality? Or was this just another dream? It couldn't be, though; it seemed so terribly real. Maybe, maybe that Keeper fellow had done what he said he would. Could Divine Beings alter time? Had the crash even happened?

"Musashi? You aren't still mad at me, are you?"

She blinked her eyes against tears of joy, then smiled up at him. "Of course not, Kojiro! I've forgiven you completely." She grabbed his hand and stood up. "Let's just pretend it never happened! Have you been in Silver Falls for long?"

"No, just a couple days." He laughed a little. "It's been a major pain for me to get around - my English isn't nearly as good as yours or Nyasu's."

Musashi glanced at the clock: it was only ten fifteen, and despite her earlier sleepiness she now felt perfectly alive.

"Would you like me to show you around? We can pick up something to eat on the way. I know of this wonderful Japanese restaurant."

"I'm not hungry, I just ate. The family I'm staying with cooks amazing meals. But if you want to take me on a tour that'd be great." Kojiro chuckled as Musashi tugged at his hand, practically dragging him towards the door. "N-nee, Musashi? You _really_ aren't mad at me?"

"How could I be?" she asked, leading him down the small street and pointing out different buildings. "Leaving Japan wasn't the biggest mistake of my life, and neither was quitting Rocket Dan. In fact, I'm probably better off in this place where nobody knows about me. But deserting _you_, Kojiro, was the stupidest thing I've ever done. Just because I was a little pissed off! I've been so lonely these past couple months. You're wonderful, to come all the way out here to apologize!"

He blushed and looked away. "I was lonely too, Musashi. But I guess none of that matters now, right?"

She turned around and flashed him a smile. "My thoughts exactly."

xxx

"This is where you're staying?" Kojiro asked, nodding at the door.

"Mm," she whispered, sliding the key into the lock. "Nyasu's probably asleep, so it'd be in your best interests not to come in. You know how he gets when you wake him up."

Kojiro laughed. "Okay." He paused. "Hey, I've got a pretty busy work schedule in the daytime, so I probably won't be able to talk to you until around eight or nine tomorrow night. Is that all right?"

As long as she could see him, he could visit her at the crack of dawn. "Perfect. We'll have another late night out. Maybe I can take you to that Japanese restaurant I mentioned."

"Sounds great. Tomorrow, then?"

"Mm," she said again, opening the door and waving to Kojiro as he went down the hall. She closed the door silently behind her, heaving a long, happy sigh.

"Who were you saying goodnight to?"

Musashi jumped, staring down into Nyasu's concerned eyes. "Oh! You're still awake?"

"I woke up around eleven and noticed you weren't in yet. I got a little worried." He peered up at her. "So, who was that?"

"Kojiro."

Nyasu's eyes softened. "Musashi," he said gently, "Kojiro's been dead for almost two months."

The female ex-Rocket froze halfway to her bedroom. Dead? But if time had been switched around... Nyasu couldn't remember what had never been... right? The past _had_ been changed! Otherwise how could Kojiro come back? She was right, wasn't she? Musashi managed a blush and an embarrassed smile, stammering out an excuse that neither of them could possibly believe. "Did I say that? Stupid me, I meant Colby. He checked into the hotel a little while ago, and wanted to know if I could show him around. I can't believe Kojiro popped out!"

Nyasu shot her another skeptical, yet altogether worried look. "If you say so, Musashi." He yawned. "I need to get to bed. It's hard work at that clinic. They need me, though, since I'm the only one who can understand the Pokemon. See you tomorrow, probably later in the evening. _Oyasumi_, Musashi."

She gave him a quick wave and a fake smile, but her heart was troubled. Why did Nyasu still remember the wreck, but Kojiro didn't? What was going on? And what… what had the Keeper meant when he said "I have my methods"?

* * *

**Japanese Glossary:**  
Gomen: "Sorry" (informal)  
Arigatou: "Thank you"  
Iie. Yorokonde: "No, it's my pleasure"  
Shimatta: "Oh no!" "Dammit," etc.  
Yani kanjii: literally "bad feeling;" it's what the trio shouts when they get "blasted off again."  
Oyasumi: "Good night" (informal)


	3. Kokoro no Himitsu: Secrets of the Heart

**Disclaimer:** I own Alana, and my odd ideas about a "Rift." As far as I know I own Silver Falls, and to my knowledge there's no movie called _Reservations Only_, but I didn't scour IMDB so I could be wrong about that. The song "Hikari no Naka e" is a real Japanese song composed by Kanno Yoko and sung by Sakamoto Maaya. Everything else is TV Tokyo's.

**Rating:** PG, for some mature themes and minor swearing

* * *

**Track Three: Kokoro no Himitsu  
-Secrets of the Heart-**

Musashi met up with Kojiro the next day around nine in the evening, as promised. "You must be tired if you work all day," she said. "Are you sure you want to go out? Nyasu's still busy at the clinic so we could go up to my room if you want."

Kojiro shrugged. "I'm really not tired at all. Funny, I don't get tired very much these days." He flashed her one of his excited, innocent smiles, and Musashi realized for the first time how much she'd missed that smile. "But I _am_ pretty hungry. What do you want to do? Any place special you'd like to go?"

"Actually, I was thinking maybe we could swing by McDonald's and just pick up something, then maybe head on over to the movie theatre. There's a new comedy out that looks pretty funny. Sound good?"

Kojiro's grin widened. "Perfect." As they started down the street, Kojiro glanced down at the ground, flushing a bit. "Er… when we get there, do you think you can do all the ordering for me? People don't seem to be able to understand my accent very well. Either that, or they just like to be rude."

"What do you mean?" Musashi asked, putting her hands behind her head. "I've always found people to be pretty friendly around here."

He frowned. "Well, it's really odd, but every time I try to get directions or ask someone a question they just ignore me. I didn't mind it so much at first but it's been going on ever since I got here."

"I wonder why they'd do that," Musashi mused aloud. "No one's ever done that to me, or to any of the tourists I've seen come to town."

He shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine. Anyway, will you do the ordering?" She nodded thoughtfully. "Thanks. Um, let's see... I guess I'll have a couple Big Macs, a large fry, Dr. Pepper..."

Musashi laughed, mind flitting away from the town's cold shoulder to more pleasant topics. "Well, your appetite certainly hasn't changed since we last spoke."

"Any chance they sell _onigiri_ here?"

"Unlikely."

"Too bad. I could've used a couple dozen of those."

xxx

Musashi stepped up to the man at the ticket window "Um, two for _Reservations Only_, please."

He shot her a skeptical look. "Two, miss?" She nodded and he chuckled. "You got a mouse in your pocket?"

"No, I—" Musashi stopped short, glancing over to where Kojiro lounged by the doors. "Just… two tickets, please."

"No problem. Didn't mean to seem rude for asking, miss," he assured her, handing her what she requested.

Musashi took the ticket stubs and gave one to Kojiro, walking quickly into the theater. What was wrong with that man? Hadn't he seen Kojiro? He'd been standing right next to her... _'It's all very strange,'_ she thought to herself, trying not to seem concerned in front of her friend.

The movie was good, though Musashi could tell Kojiro had a little trouble with the quick English dialogue. They had the theatre mostly to themselves, since it was a late night showing. Musashi liked the privacy. In spite of her troubled thoughts, she was happier than she had been in a long while. The female ex-Rocket snuggled up next to her friend in an unexpected sign of affection, whispering in his ear, "I'm really happy that we can do this kind of stuff again."

He blushed but didn't protest, and even leaned back against her a bit. "That makes two of us."

Once the movie was over they headed back home. The pair walked in silence for a while, and Kojiro seemed unusually tense at first. Musashi puzzled over this for a few minutes, then realized with a smile that his hand kept brushing up against hers before jerking away again. She rolled her eyes and reached across the distance, allowing him to loops his fingers around hers as they walked towards the Spirit Inn. He relaxed considerably after that, and she had to fight not to laugh at him. It was so very typical of her friend. "So, Kojiro, where are you staying? What floor?"

"The fourth."

She stiffened. "Excuse me?"

"Fourth floor. I didn't have much cash when I got here, but a nice family let me stay with them. They've been really great - I'm working for this small business they have, to pay my rent and make a little extra cash," Kojiro explained.

"B-but that's impossible, the fourth floor—" Musashi stopped short, watching his face. He was perfectly serious about this. "Never mind. Does it pay well?"

"Pretty well. Keeps me busy, though. But at least I get free room, board and feeding." He smiled. "You should come up sometime. Mr. Johnson's cooking is to die for."

'_Johnson? Wasn't that the name...?'_ Musashi turned her head away from Kojiro and frowned. Something very strange was going on, and she was going to find out what.

xxx

Alana was nowhere to be found when Musashi and Kojiro got back around midnight, but there was a little girl of about seven or so impatiently waiting at the foot of the elevator. She glared hard at Kojiro. "Where have you been? Mom's worried sick! You should have told us you were going out for the evening!"

Kojiro rubbed the back of his head, responding in his own, heavily-accented English. "Sorry. I thought I mention it to Mr. Johnson..."

"Oh, you know how bad Dad's memory is," the girl said with a giggle. "Anyway, glad to see you back. Can we go back upstairs?"

"Kojiro, aren't you going to introduce us?" Musashi asked at his side.

He nodded. "Oh! Erin, this is Musashi. She is friend I was telling you about. Musashi, this is Erin. She is the daughter of Jerry and Rita Johnson."

Erin's hazel eyes roamed over Musashi. "Pleased to meet you, miss." She snapped her fingers and frowned. "Oh, I left Whiskers out for the night! Kojiro, do you think you could go find him? Mom and Dad don't want me going out back alone."

"Sure, be right back." He released Musashi's hand and trotted out the back door.

Once he was gone, Erin smiled pleasantly at Musashi. "So you're Kojiro's friend from life? How come you can see us? That's really weird."

Musashi blinked. "Why _shouldn't_ I be able to see you?"

"Prob'ly 'cause I'm not really alive, silly!" she said with another little giggle. "I figured you'd know that, most people with Sight do."

"Sight? Not alive?" Musashi shook her head and sighed. Kids could be so annoying sometimes. "Forget it, I don't want to know. Can you tell me something, though? Kojiro said he was staying on the fourth floor."

"He is. Same as I am."

"That's impossible. The fourth floor was burned down years ago, and seven people with it. No one can live in a place that doesn't exist."

"Well, yeah, that's true I s'pose, but see the fourth floor does exist, just not to living people like you," Erin explained. "Anyone who lives up there is a spirit."

"Spirit?"

"Yeah, you know the hotel history, right? My mom and dad and I are part of the original seven. We've lived here for years, helping lost souls – you know, people who can't get to the Gates – find their way."

"But I don't understand. If that's true than why does Kojiro live up there?"

She giggled again. "'Cause he's a ghost of course! He's one of our newer ones that Mom and Dad have to help get to, um, you know…" she waved a hand mysteriously, "the next place."

Musashi took a step away from her. "What? But, but... no, that's not true! It's not possible! Kojiro couldn't be a – a—"

"Ghost? Sure he can. I am. We all are, up there."

"There's no way!" she denied ferociously. "He's too real to be a ghost! I've held his hand, heard him laugh, seen him eat... he's alive, all right! He has to be!"

Erin shook her head almost pityingly and slipped her hand into Musashi's. "I _feel_ real, don't I?" She nodded, too startled to say anything. "I'm sorry that you didn't know, but that's really weird. Kinda like how you can see us. Not everyone can do that. It's weird."

"Found her!" Kojiro called, toting in a mewing Nyasu. He handed the animal over to Erin, who scratched her ears fiercely.

"C'mon Whiskers, we need to get back upstairs." She turned to Musashi. "It was nice meeting you, miss. Maybe I'll see you again."

Kojiro waved good-bye. "_Oyasumi_, Musashi. Same time tomorrow?"

She shook her head, looking at him and wondering what he _really_ was. Her old friend, her dead friend... no, it just couldn't be true. "I can't wait. _Oyasumi_, Kojiro."

xxx

"Say, Alana, you know a lot about spirits, don't you?"

"Oh, I suppose I know my share," she agreed, not glancing up from her magazine. "Why? Something you want to know?" Alana laughed a little. "Did you hear the Fourth Floor Party?"

Musashi shook her head quickly. She was a bit reluctant to ask her question - Alana might get suspicious - but she had to know or she'd never sleep well at night. "You know that stuff about helping lost souls get to the Gates?"

"Yeah?"

"If a person wishes hard enough to be with another person - a dead person - will that dead person… leave the Gates… and look for the other person?"

Now Alana looked up. She fixed Musashi with a curious stare, closing her magazine as she did. "Now _there's_ an odd question if I ever heard one. And in answer to it, no, I've never heard of that happening." Musashi breathed a sigh of relief. At least she knew she wasn't guilty for Kojiro's… that was to say, if he really was one of those... "Why do you ask?"

Musashi looked down and played with the couch's upholstery. "What if I told you I thought Kojiro was haunting me?" One of Alana's eyebrows rose. Musashi chuckled weakly, waving a dismissive hand in her friend's direction. "Just, just kidding Alana. I wanted to see what your reaction was."

"Mm," was all she said, and went back to reading. Musashi coughed uneasily. The magazine went down again. "Anything else you want to know?"

"Er, yeah, I s'pose... um, how exactly does a person become a lost soul?"

Alana chewed on a hangnail, thinking the question over long and hard. "I think, if I were to give you that information, I'd have to tell you a myth about a place that is no place at all—"

"The Rift," Musashi supplied. She regretted it as soon as it came out.

The hotel owner shot her a look. "How do you know about that?" Her voice had taken on a slightly suspicious tone.

Lies were one thing the ex-Rocket knew how to do. "Er, I think I read about it in a book once. The place where time stands still, blah blah blah. It's called the Rift. People are, well, when they die they get taken there and they get asked what would make them truly happy."

"Indeed," Alana agreed, though that note of suspicion hadn't left her voice. "Most of the dead choose to go through the Gates – though don't ask me what's through them because I certainly couldn't tell you. Heaven, maybe. Or reincarnation. At any rate, that's where they usually go. Some, however, pick something from earth that'll make them content, and back to earth they go, wandering as lost souls, sometimes for eternity. Many of them know they're ghosts - typically the ones who 'haunt' buildings. Others, however, don't realize they're dead. These are the ones that, as the stories go, are the lost souls."

"So they can't remember their death? The past they remember is... different from what really happened?"

"Exactly."

Musashi chewed on her lip and looked away. So that was it. Kojiro didn't know he was dead. Obviously the families upstairs would be trying to slowly lead him up to this fact – if he found out all at once it would probably be a major blow. "What happens once they figure it out?"

Alana shrugged. "I wouldn't know, I've never been dead. But I'd guess they, you know, pass on."

"One more thing."

"Mm-hm?"

"What's Sight? With a capital S?"

"The ability to see ghosts," Alana answered coolly. "Really see them, and talk to them, not just catch a passing shape out of the corner of your eye."

"Hm." Musashi set her chin on her hands, thinking over all that she now knew. She could see ghosts - the Keeper must have had something to do with that - the fourth floor was home to several families of spirits, and Kojiro was living with them as a... as a...

Musashi said a hasty good-bye to her friend and dashed up the stairs to her room. She flung herself onto her bed, grabbing the picture of her and Kojiro that sat on the nightstand and hugging it tightly to her chest. That Keeper had granted her wish, all right... but what a way to do it!

"I can't tell him!" she cried into the shadows. "It'd hurt him too much to know that he's, he's... well, I can't tell him! If I tell him he'll be crushed, and he'll have to leave, and I'll... God, losing him once was enough! Damn that Keeper, why couldn't he have _told_ me what he was doing before he went and did it?"

Musashi hurriedly blinked back tears, hugging the photo tighter. She had to be strong, though, she couldn't break down. And she couldn't tell him. No matter what, she couldn't tell him.

'_I'll forget all that, and I'll just have fun. I know it won't last - those Johnsons will let him down easy - but for the time being I'll just have to be careful where I take him. No reason to speed up what's bound to happen eventually. Damn that Keeper! Oh, poor Kojiro...'_

xxx

The next couple weeks passed so quickly Musashi would later look back and think that it was just a dream. She and Kojiro did so much in those evenings - whether it was a movie, or a quiet walk through a park, or just hanging out in Musashi's room - that it was all filled with a lazy, wonderful happiness.

Musashi was always wary of where the two went. She tried to keep Kojiro away from crowded areas, and they never dined in. When they stayed home for the evening, Nyasu was never around, which Kojiro mentioned once or twice, but Musashi always told him not to worry – the workaholic cat gave Kojiro his regards.

Every night, when the three or fours hours they spent together ended, Musashi stood watching the elevator move to the fourth floor, her heart aching and wishing for just a few more minutes. Every extra second would have been a blessing, for who knew how many more she'd have left with him?

One day in late June, after a particularly refreshing walk through Silver Falls Park, Kojiro and Musashi stood outside her room door. Musashi was reluctant to go in, as always, and leaned back against the wall, smiling sadly at her friend. "I'm not ready to go in yet. Can't we just go out for another quick stroll?"

"I really need to get some sleep," he told her. "And so do you. I think these late night outings are hurting you a lot more than me."

Musashi covered a yawn. "Of course they aren't. Spending time with you is much more important than a little thing like sleep."

Kojiro chuckled. "You really believe that?"

"I do," she said, and his face lit up with such a smile that she couldn't help but smile back. Her happiness disappeared, however, when she glanced at the door behind her. "I'd invite you in, but what with Nyasu and his need for sleep..."

"I understand. Like I said, we should both rest up." Kojiro moved almost dangerously close to his friend's face - Musashi thought she felt her heart stop - but he pulled away at the last second. "_Oyasumi_, Musashi."

She watched him turn away and felt something sharp jerk inside her chest. "Wait!" He glanced back at her, puzzled by the panicky note in her voice. Musashi opened her mouth, uncertain as to what she wanted to say, only knowing that she suddenly had an almost overwhelming desire to tell him the truth - the truth about what was going on in his word – in her world – in _their_ world, their fragile little world of shadows. Didn't he deserve honesty, even if it hurt more than lies? Should you keep secrets from the person who you... who you...

"Musashi? What's the matter?"

She hesitated. The words were on her tongue, but she couldn't say them. In the end, it would just bring more pain to Kojiro... and to herself. "Oh, nothing," she said, and then, because she had to do _something_ and he was far too close for her to stop herself, she leaned across the hallway and pecked him on the lips. "I think you forgot to do that, though, so I thought I'd remind you. _Oyasumi_, Kojiro."

Before she could change her mind again she whirled and darted into her room, shutting the door tight behind her and leaving what she could only imagine was a very baffled, very pleased Kojiro standing in the hallway. For once, Nyasu was actually up, watching a late night talk show. "Oh, you're home. That's good. You sure are out late with that new boyfriend of yours a lot." He paused, noticing her tight lips and bunched eyebrows. "What's the matter?"

Musashi blinked at the cat, as if just noticing him. "What? Wrong? No… no, it's nothing."

Nyasu frowned. "You've been acting awfully strange since you met that guy... Colby, wasn't it? Is he treating you okay? Most of the time you're excited to meet him, but then you come home so..."

"I'm fine, Nyasu. Nothing's wrong," she said, squaring her shoulders and hurrying to her bedroom. Once she had the door closed behind her, Musashi lay down on the bed, staring up at the ceiling miserably. "Nothing, except that I'm in love with a ghost."

* * *

**Japanese Glossary:**  
Onigiri: a type of Japanese food, typically translated as "rice balls"  
Oyasumi: "Good night" (informal)


	4. Tamashii no Uta: Song of the Soul

**Disclaimer:** I own Alana, and my odd ideas about a "Rift." As far as I know I own Silver Falls, and to my knowledge there's no movie called _Reservations Only_, but I didn't scour IMDB so I could be wrong about that. The song "Hikari no Naka e" is a real Japanese song composed by Kanno Yoko and sung by Sakamoto Maaya. Everything else is TV Tokyo's.

**Rating:** PG, for some mature themes and minor swearing

* * *

**Track Four: Tamashii no Uta  
-Song of the Soul-**

_**Some of the spirits have been expressing some concerns to me, Soilwatcher. There's a lost soul by the name of Kojiro. They say they can't get through to him. It's been nearly two weeks. What do you suspect?**_

_Sir, I believe it has something to do with the young woman, Musashi. The two of them have been... unusually close, these past weeks._

_**Musashi? Yes, I remember her. **_

_You've met Musashi?_

_**Oh, yes. She stumbled upon the Rift by accident, I think. You know the custom: I asked what she wanted and she said the only thing that would make her happy was to be with Kojiro. When he came, he wanted to be with her. Neither knew what I had in mind though...**_

_You enjoy tormenting heart-broken youths too much, Sir. Had they known about your "methods," I'm sure this never would have happened._

_**Maybe, but maybe not. And what right do you have to correct me? Maybe it was cruel, but it was only what they asked for. I can't bring a person back from the dead, you know that. This was the best I could do.**_

_Yes, Sir. I apologize. I just... never mind. It's not my place. What do you propose we do?_

_**We? Nothing. Kojiro will never pass through the Gates unless someone gets through to him, and Musashi seems to be the only person who can reach our friend.**_

_He may figure it out for himself._

_**Let's hope he doesn't! We've seen what that does to people! Which is exactly why you must talk to Musashi, and soon. It's been too long - much too long for comfort.**_

_Me, Sir? Do you really think it's necessary that I blow my cover? Granted, she knows me well enough that I might make her see reason, but... it just seems like I should be the last resort._

_**Hm. You have a good point. Well, then, why not have Rita Johnson talk to her? Rita is a very straightforward woman, and she knows Kojiro fairly well. Oh, don't laugh so much, I know she's a bit tactless but that may be exactly what we need. If that doesn't work...**_

_Understood. I won't let you down, Sir._

_**Let's see that you don't. Oh, here comes another cluster of souls to the Gates - my job is never done. Goodbye, Soilwatcher of Spirit Glitch.**_

_Until next time..._

xxx

Musashi and Kojiro came home from another late-night movie, still laughing at their favorite parts and quoting lines. Hand in hand and so indulged in their conversation, they didn't even see the ghostly woman until they were practically on top of her.

"Kojiro, there you are dear!" She was a tall, thin woman, still young but carrying herself like one much older, with long brown hair and a stubborn jaw. "That impossible cat of ours has gotten himself lost again. Do you think you could...?"

"Oh, no problem Rita," Kojiro agreed. Pulling somewhat reluctantly out of Musashi's hold, he disappeared out the back door.

As soon as the ex-Rocket was gone, Rita fixed Musashi with a hard, piercing glare. "Why are you doing this?"

"Doing what?"

"Nursing this idea of Kojiro's that he's still alive! He'll never be able to pass on like this, you know!"

Musashi took a step back, surprised by the harshness in the delicate woman's voice. "M-my job isn't to ease him into the truth, that's yours. It's not my fault if you aren't doing it right."

"Doing it right!" It looked like Rita might hit her, but she stopped at the last moment. "We can't do anything while Kojiro still spends time with you! Every time I try to bring up the fact that no one in town seems to notice him, he always says 'Musashi notices me, and that's all I need.' As long as you keep seeing him, he's going to be stuck here!"

Musashi bristled. "Well, I can't very well stop seeing him - we both live in the same hotel, and I'm not going to move - so what do you expect me to do?"

"I expect you to tell him the truth. You're obviously the only person who can get through to the poor boy. He came back here for you, you know. He said 'As long as I can be with Musashi I'll be happy.' Now look where it's gotten him!"

"I don't see what the problem is," Musashi argued. "He's happy, and so am I. Why can't it just continue this way?"

"These sorts of things can be kept secret for a time, but not forever. Sooner or later Kojiro's going to want to go out and buy something on his own, and no one's going to even glance at him. What happens if he gets in a crowded area somewhere? People may go right through him. He'll find out sooner or later."

"So?"

Rita slapped Musashi hard across the cheek. "Idiot! Do you know what _happens_ to people who figure it out for themselves? Can you _imagine_ the shock of suddenly realizing that you're dead? I've seen spirits go mad, shun the Gates, even disappear altogether! Do you understand what that means, you little idiot? That means your friend _stops existing anywhere_. Do you _want_ to see that happen to him? Well!"

Musashi felt tears spring to her eyes at the thought. How horrible! And to see it happen to Kojiro would be... She shook her head hard. She had to be tough – she couldn't shed tears. "I know that you need to let him down easy, but _I _can't tell him. I wouldn't be able to stand it. Kojiro would be so hurt... I don't want to cause him any pain."

"Maybe that's your reason. Maybe it's partly for him..." Rita's voice lowered. "But isn't the real reason because _you_ don't want to lose him again?"

"Of... of course not," Musashi insisted, sounding unsure. "I mean, yes, it'd be bad for me too, but... but... I love Kojiro. If it was a question of his happiness then I'd—"

"If you really love him as much as I think you do," Rita hissed, "then you'll tell him the truth. I've seen a lost soul go bad too many times in my afterlife. Kojiro is a sweet person. Don't you think he deserves happiness?"

Musashi felt the building ball of frustration and heat in her chest finally sneak up and burst out of her throat. "Well, what about _my_ happiness? Once Kojiro's gone, that's it for him, he gets paradise! And what do I get, huh Rita? Tell me that!"

"You selfish bitch!" she snarled, grabbing Musashi by the collar. "My boss is damned unhappy with the situation, and I'm getting sick of your attitude! Now you listen to me: Kojiro's starting to figure it out. He came home the other day and said to me, 'Rita, do you ever feel like you don't exist?' and even though he talked happily about his time with you, his eyes were troubled. Do you want to see him become one of _those_?"

Musashi's eyes dropped to the floor. "No. No, that's the last thing I want."

"Well, then?"

"I - I suppose that I'll have to..."

"What the hell is going on here?"

Rita and Musashi both looked up to see an infuriated Kojiro standing at the back door, Whiskers on the floor by his feet. Rita released Musashi in a hurry, eyes fixed on the floor. "I was… I was only..."

"Yeah, I saw what you were _only_ doing," Kojiro snapped, striding across the floor and shoving the Nyasu none-too-lightly into Rita's hands. "Just who do you think you are?" He slid an arm around Musashi's waist and pulled her in next to him. "What gives you the right to do that to Musashi?"

"Kojiro, you have to understand, it isn't as bad as it looks."

He snorted. "True, it's ten times worse." He looked to Musashi. "You all right?" She nodded, but he noticed the swollen red mark blossoming on her cheek. His eyes whirled back to glare down the other woman. "Rita!"

"Just drop it Kojiro," Musashi said dejectedly, pulling out of his hold. "It really _isn't_ as bad as it seems. We were just... it was nothing, trust me."

His eyes flared briefly as he looked at the defiant Rita. "I'll take your word on that. Rita, I know that you've been a little against my late night outings, but that's still no reason to..."

Rita fumbled with the elevator button, lips pursed angrily. "I'm going upstairs! I don't have time to stand around and be insulted!" Her eyes went past Kojiro to Musashi. "Soon."

Musashi nodded miserably, dreading what she was going to have to tell her friend before the week was out.

Once Rita had gone, Kojiro sighed. "What is wrong with her? She's normally a nice person, but that streak of hers..." He turned back to Musashi. "You're _sure_ everything's okay? If she's going to be a jerk like that, I can move out, you just say the word and I'll…" He trailed off as he noticed the tears at the corners of her eyes, "Oh, Musa, please don't cry. I hate it when you cry. Here, we'll get some ice for that. I apologize for her – I just don't know what could've gotten into her."

The female ex-Rocket swallowed hard. He cared so much for her; all he wanted was for her to be happy. She had to do the same thing for him, even if it killed her. She squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the tears to disappear. She had to be strong. "No, really, Kojiro, it's fine. It's not Rita. It's just... look, I'm really tired. Do you mind if I go up to my room?"

"Oh." He seemed almost hurt that she'd turned down his offer. "O…Okay. I'll see you tomorrow, then?"

"Hai. _Oyasumi_, Kojiro."

xxx

"Musashi, are you okay?"

"I'm fine Nyasu."

"You always say that, but I'm starting to doubt it. Hey! Where'd you get that red mark? Is that Colby guy doing that? I think you really oughta stop seeing that guy—"

"Nyasu, there _is_ no Colby!" Musashi snapped. "There's never _been_ in Colby! Oh, you're so dense sometimes...!"

He watched her dash past him and into her room, his eyes wide and confused. "Musashi—"

"Just leave me alone!" she shrieked through her locked door.

Musashi sat down on her bed and turned on whatever CD she'd last had in her stereo.

"_Even though I should want to wish  
for you to find happiness,  
I can't, I'm too immature."_

"Hikari no Naka e" again? She slammed her hand back down on the _off_ button. "I _hate_ this song!" she shouted to nobody. Too tired to find something else, she lay back on her bed, eyes half-closed. "Oh, now what am I gonna do?"

xxx

"Alana, do you mind if I take Saturday afternoon and evening off?"

"Right in the middle of the busy season? That's pushing it a bit Musa—" She stopped short; the ex-Rocket was chewing on her lip, and even looked near tears. "Oh, is it… is it that important?"

"I need to talk to a friend. I have to tell them something... that I don't really want to tell them. It's very important. Please, Alana."

The hotel owner's look softened. "I understand. Take the whole day off if you'd like. Good luck, with whatever it is you need to do."

"Thank you."

xxx

"Kojiro, do you think you can get Saturday afternoon and evening off?"

Kojiro sensed that something was bothering Musashi. He put his arm around her shoulders as they walked down the street towards the park. "What do you want to do Saturday afternoon?"

"I want to have a date with you that's not in moonlight. Plus, I... I really need to talk to you about something. It's important."

"Oh?" Kojiro frowned but didn't try to pry. "Well, if it's that important, I'm sure I can get some time off."

"I know Rita works you hard, but if you tell her it's something I need to talk to you about—"

His voice turned icy for a moment. "Even if she said no, I'd still come. Rita isn't my keeper, and you're much more important than her." He hesitated. "What is it, anyway?"

Musashi sounded about as dreary as she felt. "You'll just have to wait and see."

xxx

"Ya, Musashi!"

In spite of her recent problems, the ex-Rocket couldn't help but laugh. Kojiro had really gone all-out for this one, she thought as he presented her with a sweet smile and a bouquet of roses. "Wow, that's so nice of you, Koji! I should put these back up in my room..." She thought of Nyasu, lounging about on his day off. "No, wait, I'll get a vase and put them in the lobby."

After she'd taken care of the flowers, Musashi grabbed her friend's hand and dragged him outside. "I know of the perfect place to go. I found it when I first came to Silver Falls. I think you'll really like it."

Laughing and demanding a hint, Kojiro followed her down the backstreets and between several buildings. "We're taking a funny way to get there. Wouldn't the main street be quicker?"

Musashi frowned, once again reminded of how transient these past few weeks had been. She fought to keep her voice cheerful. "I just felt like a change of scenery." She pulled up suddenly as they reached the outskirts of town, waving a hand towards the new scenery.

Kojiro looked out to see a gently sloping hill leading down to the road far below. The little hillock was covered in soft spring grass and mountain flowers, and a large pine tree served to drape the area in cool shadows.

Musashi chose a spot in the sunlight, laying down in the grass and bidding Kojiro to do the same. He did as she said, slipping his hand into hers as he did. "Don't you think this place is nice?" Musashi asked.

Kojiro smiled. "Hai. You don't see the sky this blue very much."

The female ex-Rocket followed his gaze upwards. The sky was indeed an unusually brilliant blue, and there were only a few tufts of clouds, whipping away through the breeze. A Pijotto circled lazily, dropping into the nearby pine tree. The scene took her back to another lovely day with her companion... a day that had ended in misery.

"You know, it really is a beautiful day," he remarked.

Musashi bit her lip hard – those had been Kojiro's last words alive. She closed her eyes halfway, taking a deep, steadying breath. "Yeah. It was on a day, a lot like this, when you..." She stopped, felt herself choking on the words.

"When I...?" Kojiro repeated, puzzled.

She turned her eyes to the ground. In a barely audible whisper, she murmured, "When you died."

Musashi felt his eyes on her. "When I… when I _died_? What do you mean? Musashi, I never—"

"Don't you remember, Kojiro?" she interrupted, already feeling her voice rising and cracking. She fought to keep herself calm, at least until she could finish explaining. "We got into that fight, that really bad one. I fell asleep, and when I woke up Nyasu said you'd gone to the mall. I knew you were still mad at me, so I followed, hoping to catch you before you got to the shopping center."

"Musashi..."

She could tell by his frightened voice that it was coming back. She bit back a sob – she couldn't cry, not now. She had to be the strong one. "Only, only you never got to the mall. There was a huge wreck. By the time I got there, doctors and policeman were swarming the place. I heard you were in the crash, so I went to find you. And, and when I did, you told me that you didn't have a chance, that you were going to..." she trailed off.

"I was in so much pain," Kojiro murmured, picking up the narrative. "And I was terrified of dying. You were scared, too, but you promised you'd be tough." He lowered his voice into a puzzled caress of a whisper. "You held my hand. You gave me a little bit of courage in those last moments. Then, then things started hazing out, and I..."

"And you died," Musashi finished, again choking on the words.

"And I died," he repeated as if in a daze. "Why did I forget that until just now? But… but there was more, too. I went to this place... It was so dark, and so quiet, and I missed you and Nyasu terribly. The Keeper of this, this Rift, came to me, and asked me if I wanted eternity. But all I wanted was to be with you. He said he could grant that, and then he left and... Does that mean I'm a ghost?"

Musashi nodded miserably. "I'm the only living person who can see you. I went to the Rift, too, Kojiro, and asked to have you back. The Keeper gave us what we wanted, only... only not the way we wanted!"

"Why did you try to hide it from me?" Kojiro demanded suddenly, sitting up and forcing her to meet his gaze. "Musashi, we've been doing this for nearly three weeks. Why did you wait so long to tell me?"

Musashi felt tears spring to her eyes again and had to look away from him. "I didn't want to. I didn't want to hurt..." She shook her head hard. That wasn't the truth, she knew it as well as Rita had. "I didn't want to lose you! I'd heard that when a lost soul found out they were dead, they passed on. Went back to that Rift, and on past the Gates. The thought of losing you again... I, I just couldn't…"

Kojiro pressed a hand to her shoulder. "Musa..."

"Rita made me see reason, though," she assured him, though she still had to keep her eyes on the ground to make sure she didn't break down. "Someone had to tell you, 'cause if you found out for yourself… well, you just couldn't, is all. I thought I was protecting you, but all along I was just screwing everything up even more! Worse still, the two of us have been getting closer these past weeks. Two months ago, if someone had asked what my relationship with you was, I'd have said 'my best friend.' Only now... _Kuso_! I'm such an _idiot_!"

Musashi halfway wanted Kojiro to smack her and tell her how pissed off he was, halfway wanted him to hug her and say it wasn't her fault at all. He did neither, but instead just asked, again in that dreamlike tone, "So what happens now?"

"I don't know," she whispered. "I would assume that once you go back up the elevator... well, that's it. You'll probably go back to the Rift."

He shivered. "_That_ horrible place? I'd sooner stay here than go there."

"Well, from there you can go on to the Gates," Musashi reminded him. "You'll be a lot happier once you get there, I'm sure. You _do_ want to go there, right?"

"No! Well, yes! I mean..." He cupped her hands in his, watching her, that naïve simplicity of his searching so hard for the right answer to this painfully complex question. "Can't I just stay here with you? Who says I have to go back to the fourth floor? Is it possible that I..." He trailed off, sinking back on his heels into the grass. "That's odd."

Musashi sat up with a start. "What? Are you okay? Koji, you don't look too good! Paler than usual. Almost…"

He shook his head. "I don't know. Only… only I'm suddenly tired. Really, _really_ tired, like just sitting here is taking all the energy I have." He stared down at his hand, swallowing hard. Musashi followed his gaze and nearly cried out when she saw his fingers flicker translucent for a fraction of a second. "Oh, hell," he whispered weakly. "That's not supposed to happen."

She gripped his hand as the flickering fingers solidified again, though she could tell by the crease in his forehead that it took effort for him to make it happen. "That's it, then. Now that you know, you have to go back. You'll just exhaust yourself and fade out if you try to stay here. You _have_ to go back, Kojiro."

"Musa... don't you want me to stay?"

"Of course I do!" she cried hotly. "Don't ever think I wouldn't! But not if you're going to have to fight tooth and claw just to stay _visible _here. Besides," she added, setting her tired head against his shoulder, "you know as well as I do that we can't keep this up. Koji, I... well, I..."

"I know. It can't last." He paused, dropping her hand so that he could loop his arms around her waist, giving her a comforting little squeeze. "So, now what?"

"We still have the rest of the day, if you think you're up for it," Musashi said timidly. "Is there anything in particular that you want to do?"

"You think… you think maybe we can just stay here? It's so beautiful, so peaceful, no one's going to bother us. For dinner, we - well, _you_ - could go get some take-out, maybe? If it isn't too much trouble."

At that moment, fetching the moon wouldn't have been too much trouble. "Not at all. It's a good plan. I want to enjoy this, and I want you to enjoy it too. It's the last few hours..."

"I know," he interrupted, releasing his hold on her waist again. "Don't think about it. Let's just be happy for the moment."

Musashi lay back down with Kojiro next to her. He was right. She couldn't think about what would happen later. Not now, anyway. She smiled slightly, closing her eyes against the sunlight. "It really is a beautiful day, isn't it?"

xxx

Musashi looked at the elevator doors and had an overpowering desire to dismantle every button in the damned thing. This was it. There was no going back. Kojiro knew what he was, and what he had to do. He'd be happier in the end, she knew. As for herself...

"Twice!" she snarled. "Once was bad enough, but now I'm losing you again! And all because of that stupid Rift..." Musashi clenched her fists, pulling away from the arm Kojiro tried to slip around her waist. "It's worse this time, too! Before I loved you, but now I _love_ you! This just isn't fair!"

"I know what you mean. I'm losing you, too."

"It's different for you!" she snapped back. "You get eternity! _Paradise_, Kojiro! How can a person be sad with that? But what do I get? Just one more loss to a list that's already kilometers long!"

"You aren't making this any easier on me, Musa," Kojiro told her. He gripped her shoulders, forcing her to look at him. Though his face was the picture of decisiveness, his eyes betrayed his own sorrow. "There's no way I'm going to be happy anywhere without you, you know that. But I'll see you again. I'm sure of it."

"We're in our early twenties, Koji. It's an awfully long time. God, I can't stand this!" Musashi felt tears leap into her eyes for more than the first time that day.

"Oh, please don't cry. I hate it when you cry. This is going to be hard for both of us, but you have to be tough. You've got to be strong, Musa."

Musashi beat a fist into his chest - Kojiro winced but didn't try to pull away. "That's what I've been telling myself since you died! 'Be strong, Musashi, you promised Kojiro.' 'Don't cry, you have to be strong.'" The fist against his chest thumped into him again, though weaker this time, as if it was taking everything she had just to keep those fingers tensed. "I'm sick of being strong! I'm sick of being so damned tough all the time!"

"What do you want to be, then?" he asked softly.

"I just... I just..." Musashi finally gave it up and burst into tears. "I don't know what the hell I want to be, but I don't want to be it without _you _around!"

Kojiro paused, uncertain of what to do, but after a moment's hesitation he let instinct take over and pulled Musashi into his arms, letting her sob into his shirt. "I'm so sorry," he murmured, one hand rubbing at her back while the other stroked nervously through her hair. "I'm sorry this is going to happen, but I can't help it." She said nothing, but just kept wailing.

_'This is the last thing I wanted!' _Kojiro thought, feeling tears sneaking into his own eyes. _'When I asked to come back, I wanted to _keep_ from hurting Musashi, not hurt her even more!'_

The sharp overflow of sorrow seemed to dig into his last reserves of strength, and he felt the hands against Musashi's back weaken, almost as if they were going to pass straight through her at any moment. The feeling sent a wave of terror up his back, which only served to make his fatigue even worse. He pulled away from her with an effort, though he couldn't stop from grabbing her hands within his own fading ones. "I have to go, Musashi. I don't want to, but..." Another wave of exhaustion washed over him, this one so strong that it took everything he had not to collapse to the floor. "I'm so tired. I need to rest."

She looked up, tears still running freely down her cheeks. "Th-this is it, then?"

He nodded, but forced a tired smile. "Don't cry. We'll meet again, right?"

The words rang familiar in Musashi's head – more lyrics to that accursed "Hikari no Nake e." She sniffled, staring hard at the floor again. "But not being able to see you is something that only I know about," she whispered, completing the lyric.

"_Sayonara_," he murmured, leaning down and touching his lips to hers in one final farewell. They were so cold, she thought numbly, even as she kissed him back. So, so much colder than the other times. It was that thought that allowed her to let him pull away a few long seconds later. "_Aishiteiru_," he said, swallowing back what she knew had to be tears of his own. The elevator doors opened beside them, and he at last released his hold on her hand, backing slowly into the elevator, his eyes never leaving hers. One last sweet, sad smile told of their farewell, then the doors slid shut, and all was silence again.

"Musashi?"

She jumped, whirling at the familiar voice. Nyasu stood behind her, staring at the elevator doors. "Was that - I could have sworn - but it couldn't have been…" He glanced up again, eyes widening at the sight of her tear-stained face. "Musashi! Is everything all right?"

She shook her head. "Everything is perfectly horrible, Nyasu. Oh, Kojiro."

He looked back at the elevator. "Then I – it wasn't a – is that who—?"

Nyasu wasn't sure whether he was worried or relieved to see Musashi still crying freely, not trying to keep it in. She started for the stairs. "I'll explain later. Right now I just need to go to bed. I'm so tired I could sleep for a lifetime."

* * *

**Japanese Glossary:  
**Oyasumi: Good night  
Ya!: Hey!  
Pijotto: Pidgeotto  
Sayonara" Good-bye  
Aishiteiru: I love you


	5. Itsumo Kagayaiteru: Forever Shining

**Disclaimer:** I own Alana, and my odd ideas about a "Rift." As far as I know I own Silver Falls. The song "Hikari no Naka e" is a real Japanese song composed by Kanno Yoko and sung by Sakamoto Maaya. Everything else is TV Tokyo's.

**Rating:** PG, for some mature themes and minor swearing.

* * *

**Track Five: Itsumo Kagayaiteru  
-Forever Shining-**

_Where am I? This seems familiar. I know this darkness too well... I must be in the Rift again. Then this is it, then? Oh, this is awful! This isn't how I wanted it to end at all! I only wanted to prevent Musashi from getting hurt... She was crying so hard, like she'd never stop. I was so tired, I didn't even think about what I could have done to help her! I should have stayed, just for a few more minutes, if only to dry her eyes and walk her to her door! But it's come out all wrong! Musashi, I'm so sorry!_

_**You're crying again.**_

_You again? Why don't you just go away and leave me alone? You've messed things all up –_ I've_ messed things all up! Oh, Musashi, if I could only go back just ten minutes, it'd be enough! But no one can change time._

_**I cannot, anyway. Why are you crying now? And why are you back? Did you not want to stay with her, with Musashi? Is that now what **_**she**_** wanted as well?**_

_Shut up! You know damn well that I couldn't have stayed! I was so tired, so exhausted... And even if I had stayed, it would've only hurt Musashi even more! Damn it, she loved me! Don't you understand that? But she can't be with a dead man... a, a spirit... Why did you do it this way?_

_**You said you wanted to be with her. She felt the same way. I cannot change time, nor make dead men live again. I did what I could. It was your choice to leave.**_

_My _choice_? If you'd told me what you were going to do…!_

_**Were you not with her?**_

_Yes! I mean, no! I mean, I was, but... not in the right way! When I said I wanted to be with Musashi, I meant... well, I didn't mean like this. No, never like this. You say your duty is to make people happy, but all you did was make the both of us even more miserable! Now why don't you go away and torment somebody else?_

_**Impossible. I cannot leave you here. No one may remain in the Rift. The Gates are that way – you are welcome to enter.**_

_I'm staying right here and waiting for Musashi!_

_**A very long wait. Sixty years and then some, if there are no accidents. That can seem like a painful eternity in this place of darkness.**_

_I don't care! I'm not moving! I'm not going through any Gates without Musashi!_

_**...You remain firm on this decision? That is what you wish?**_

_Yes! I won't go anywhere without Musashi, and that's final! Wait. Why are you chuckling? I don't like that sound. What are you doing?_

_**If that's what you want, then that is most certainly what you will get. Musashi will join you at the Gates... soon. In the meantime, you will have to go back to Earth. I cannot have lost souls wandering around the Rift, now can I?**_

_Huh? Wait! What do you mean by 'soon'? How can Musashi... No, you can' t mean what I think you mean! Come back here! Damn it, COME BACK! I didn't mean it at all like... Oh no, here's that hazy feeling again... I must be going back... but maybe I can save her before... damn that Riftkeeper! If I ever see him again... Musashi, hang on, I'm coming...!_

xxx

Kojiro found himself once more in the main lobby of the hotel. He glanced around, blinking hard and trying to remember what had happened, and why he was—

The memorized slammed into him, and he was pounding his way up the staircase and to Musashi's door before he was hardly aware that his feet were moving. He knocked twice, then, remembering what he was, took a breath, closed his eyes, and plunged through the wood.

"Musashi?" he called, glancing about frantically. He had to find her and warn her. If he caught her before she went out, out to where some dangerous "accident" could end her life, then maybe he could stop the Keeper's awful plans.

Kojiro noticed that the back bedroom door was closed. With another deep breath he dived once more through the door, breathing a sigh of relief when he found Musashi curled up under her covers. "Musa?" he called softly. She didn't even budge. _'Can she see me or hear me anymore, I wonder?'_ Timidly Kojiro walked to the edge of her bed and pressed his hands to the coverlet. His translucent palms slipped through them a few times before finally, gritting his teeth, he managed to grasp at them and push them away from her head. "Musashi?"

His old partner lay curled up tightly in a ball, pale and shivering from head to toe. He felt the bottom drop out of his stomach. That Keeper had moved in all the wrong ways – and in the only way that Kojiro _couldn't_ fight back.

"Damn him," he hissed under his breath. He set the back of his hand to Musashi's forehead, wincing at the heat that raced up his spiritual form. _'Poor Musashi. But what can _I_ do?'_ "Oh, where is that stupid cat?" he demanded out loud. "How could he leave you like this?"

One of Musashi's eyes opened halfway. "Mm? Koji?" He nodded, but before he could say anything Musashi sat up straight, her arms flying out to grab at his shimmering form. He half-expected her arms to slide right through him, but she held on tight, wrapping her quavering arms around his neck with surprising strength. "Kojiro! My God, I can't believe you came back! But, but how? How in the world did you... Ooooh…" She sighed softly, her arms loosening from his neck as she fell back to the bed with a_ thump_.

"Calm down, Musa. I'll explain everything when you're feeling better. Listen, I want to make you something to eat. Is there any soup?"

"Chicken noodle in the cabinet," she murmured. "Man, I'm so drained. I feel like I couldn't even lift a pair of chopsticks. Ever since I woke up yesterday morning..."

_Yesterday?_ Kojiro bit his lip. He wondered how long it would take the Keeper's illness to kill her. "Okay, I'll go get that warmed up for you." She shivered again and, focusing hard, he grabbed the covers and wrapped them back around her body. "I'll see if I can find some more blankets for you, too."

"Koji?"

"Mm?"

"What's going on?"

He smiled weakly. "Going on? You're sick, that's what's going on, and that's all that matters right now. Please, just try to rest while I take care of you." As soon as her eyes closed Kojiro slipped through the door again. Tears sprang to his eyes. _'There I go again, ruining everything for her. Musashi, I'm so sorry! This isn't what I meant at all!'_

xxx

Nyasu came home an hour or so later, loaded down with groceries and several bottles of medicine. "Musashi, _tadaima_! I got a load of great things from the store, and plenty of stuff for your flu... or whatever it is if you've caught..." He trailed off as he glanced around the room and noted both the extra blankets on her bed and the empty bowl on her nightstand. "Huh? But, did she...?" Nyasu shivered as a chill breeze seemed to trace its way down his back. "Brr! Where'd that draft come from?"

Kojiro ran his hand along the cat's back again. "You're worried about Musashi too, huh Nyasu?" he asked, though he knew his old friend couldn't hear him.

Nyasu glanced over his shoulder a little nervously, then shook his head and took a seat next to his Musashi's bed. "Hey, Musashi? C'mon, wake up, I got something to keep the fever down."

Her eyes flickered open. "_Okaeri_, Nyasu. What'd you say you got?"

"Some medicine. By the way, did you get up to get the blankets and soup? You really shouldn't strain yourself, you know. You're way too weak to be moving around right now."

"Wasn't me," she murmured through a voice thick with exhaustion. "Was Kojiro..."

Nyasu frowned at his friend. "Yeah. Kojiro. He's a great guy, always looking out for you."

Kojiro snorted from the other side of Musashi's bed. "Huh! And a fine job I've done of it, too."

xxx

"Alana, could you come with me?"

"Um, sure Nyasu. What's the problem?"

"It's Musashi. I think she's taken a turn for the worse. I was wondering if I should take her to the hospital, but I thought that you could just take a quick look and tell me what you think. You seem to know a lot about pretty much everything."

"Thanks for the compliment. How many days has it been?"

"Just four, but she's already pale as a ghost. I just don't understand how anything could hit somebody _this_ fast. Musashi's usually so tough, too."

"Weird," Alana agreed as she followed Nyasu into the apartment. He led her into the back room, where Kojiro sat stroking Musashi's hand. Nyasu glanced up at Alana, his eyes widening as _hers_ narrowed in concern and surprise. "Is it that bad?"

"It's pretty bad, all right." Kojiro at last glanced up at the two, sitting up straight when he realized that Alana was staring at him – not _through _him, but directly _at _him. "Nyasu," she said, her voice an officious snap, "could you run down to the local pharmacy and ask for some Motrin?"

"I think I've already got some—"

"We're going to need more," she commanded. Nyasu winced under her tone and hurriedly padded out of the room. As soon as the apartment door clicked shut behind him, Alana turned her full attention to the bed again. "What are you doing back here?" Kojiro didn't answer. He was so used to no one but Musashi being able to see him that he just assumed the question was delivered at someone else. "_Kojiro_!" she snapped, and this time his head snapped around to face her. "What are you doing back here? I was told that you'd passed on a few days ago."

He stared at her wide-eyed. "Y-you can see me?"

"Of course I can! I'd be a pretty awful Soilwatcher if I didn't have the Sight! Now, tell me why you aren't at the Rift or past the Gates."

He shook his head, pressing his palm against his forehead. "Not for long," he murmured wearily. "I'll be going back before the week is out, if that Keeper has his way. I never meant for it to turn out like this, but it's all gone to hell, as usual. All gone to hell—"

"What are you talking about?" she interrupted. "I know you're exhausted – you must be, if you've been hanging around here for the past few days – but I need to understand what's going on."

So Kojiro told her the entire story as best as he could, working around both his own exhaustion and the knot building in his throat. "…And I never meant it like that. I just wanted to wait for her. You have to understand that I _never _wanted _this_! Only it never turns out the way I want it to. Poor Musa, if I'd just entered those Gates from the beginning, then none of this… none of this…" He trailed off, his head drooping to lay against her arm and his throat working hard to keep back his tears.

Alana pursed her lips. "That's _it_. I'm sick to death of seeing that Riftkeeper do this to people! Come on, Kojiro, we're going to have a nice, long chat with that wretched boss of mine!"

She snapped her hand around Kojiro's wrist and pulled him forward, but as he staggered to his feet something inside of him seemed to tear in half. He screamed and doubled over, grabbing at his abdomen as he collapsed to the ground. _'It's just like back then,'_ he thought through a curtain of fire. _'Just like that awful day of the crash…'_

"Oh, no," Alana whispered. Kojiro thought he heard her feet turn and pound out of the room, but he couldn't be certain anymore. He couldn't be certain of _anything_ really, nothing but that pain, and even _that_ was started to slowly fade into the distance.

_'Everything's going hazy. D-does that mean I'm going back? But if I am, then Musashi is... No, no, Musashi! You can't, you can't…!'_

xxx

_Here I am again. Even though it's my third time I'm still not at all used to it. This darkness is so thick that it practically chokes you. I wonder why I'm here this time. It's so hard to remember._

**Kojiro?**

_Huh? What was that? I know that voice! Could it be... is it possible that it's...? B-but wait, that's right… before, she was…_

**Kojiro! Kojiro thank God I found you! I thought I'd be lost in this place forever, but I heard your voice and I followed it! I'm so happy, we're together agai— **

_Oh, no! Oh no, no, no, no, no! It can't be! It _can't_ be!_

**Koji, what's wrong? Aren't you glad to see me?**

_Musashi, there's only one way you can be here. You're _dead_, do you realize that? And I did it, too! I said, "I won't enter the Gates without Musashi." But I _never_ meant it like this! I never wanted you to… to…_

**I don't understand. Why're you so upset? This is what we both wanted, right? Aren't you glad to see me?**

_Of course I'm glad to see you. I'm _always_ glad to see you. But... please, no, don't hug me, it makes this even worse! Musashi, you're _dead_, and if you aren't you're very close. Don't you understand that?_

**So? If I'm dead I'm dead, there's nothing we can do about that. And if I'm very close, then, well, I'll just have to walk that road, right? You shouldn't be so sad. We're together again. Isn't that what matters?**

_But you can't die like this! Don't you get it? Just to be with me... It isn't right. I can't stand knowing that you died because of me! No! It just can't happen this way!_

**Koji...**

_Oh, Musa, don't cry, I hate it when you cry. Here, come here. See, that's better, isn't it?_

**But... but you **_**want**_**me to go back? You want me to go back to that miserable world? Kojiro, how can you ask me to do that? This is the first chance that I've had to end this the right way, and I'm not about to give that up!**

_Musashi, please. Kojiro's right. This isn't the way it should be._

**Huh? That voice. I know that voice. Not the Keeper though... why won't you show yourself?**

_It's best that you don't know. Musashi, listen to me. Kojiro's right. You have to go back. It isn't too late, but in a few minutes it will be._

**No! I refuse! I'm sick of being so strong all the time! You asked me what I wanted to be, Kojiro. Well, I want to be with you! I don't want to have to worry about being strong or tough or anything but who I am.**

_I... I... NO! You need to go back!_

**It's killing you to say that, it's so obvious. Why are you so against this?**

_Because... because... Musashi, as much as I want to be with you, I can't, not right now. That was decided when I got into that accident. It was pure chance, a coincidental 'something' that could happen to anyone. This, though... this isn't. This is playing with fate. It's all that damn Riftkeeper's fault!_

_**How impolite to insult someone in their own land.**_

_You! Show yourself, you bastard! Just because this is the place that isn't a place doesn't mean I can't kick your ass!_

_**Touchy, touchy. I gave you what you wanted, did I not? Musashi is here, and the two of you can spend the rest of eternity together.**_

_But I wouldn't be happy, not really, because I'd always know _I _was the one who killed her!_

**Koji...**

_Musashi, you know I love you, but this... this isn't right. It can't be done in this way. It just... can't._

**Damn it, NO! I refuse to go back to a place where you ****aren't****! I couldn't stand it, and I know you couldn't stand being here alone, too! Isn't there **_**anything**_** we can do?**

_Hm... maybe there is. Sir, I believe I may have a compromise to this problem._

**You**_** have no authority on this! These are my personal matters, Soilwatcher, and I suggest you stay out of them.**_

_Perhaps I shouldn't get involved, but this has gone on for too long. Your Superior put you in charge of this place to give people a chance at happiness – you know how much He hates sadness – and you've done a terrible job._

_**What do you propose I do then, **_**Subordinate**_**? I've tried everything I can to give these two some bit of happiness, but they are displeased every time.**_

_You really are a very sick, twisted Being, Sir. And you haven't tried everything. There's always..._

_**What? But we do that so rarely! I would prefer to avoid such unnecessary annoyances.**_

Annoyances_, are they? Well, then, I suppose I should take this to your Superior as an official complaint. I'm sure He'll be interested to hear all about this situation._

_**Would you? What am I saying, of course you would. Well, this is a tricky thing. And how can you be sure it's the best thing?**_

_You'll have to take my word on it, Sir. Now, Musashi you need to go back. I'm sorry, but this is how things need to be._

**Without Kojiro? Forget it! I'm not leaving!**

_Musashi. Please._

**Koji, I just...**

_For me?_

**Kojiro, I... oh, damn, you had to go and kiss me. Fine, then, I'll do it for you. But won't you be awfully lonely?**

_As long as I know that you're alive and doing your best to be happy, then I'm sure I'll manage._

_Please, neither of you need to worry. My superior and I will do our best to fix this. Everything will be taken care of. Now, both of you, please get some rest._

**Rest? How can I rest **_**now**_**? These… are my last moments with you then, Kojiro?**

_Not the last. We'll meet again somehow, Musa._

**Damn, I'm gonna miss you.**

_Oh, it looks like everything's hazing out. I love you, Musashi!_

**I love you, too! Be strong!**

_Be yourself! _Sayonara_, Musashi..._

xxx

"Oh! Musashi! You bought a Meowth! How adorable!"

"I know, isn't he just the cutest?" she said with a smile, sliding the kitten into Alana's arms.

"This was so sudden though. How in the world...?" Alana laughed as the little animal tried to scramble out of her hands.

"Well, I'd been thinking of getting a pet for a while now, but I'd just never really found the right one. Then today when Nyasu and I were at the mall I spotted this sweet little Siamese. I've always been fond of cats, and the little boy looked right at me with those big green eyes of his and I just couldn't resist."

The kitten managed to squirm away from Alana, running over to Musashi and practically jumping into her arms. The hotel manager giggled. "He's certainly fond of you."

Musashi held him up in front of her. "Yes. You know, it's almost as if we were made for each other, strange as it sounds." She kissed him on the nose, giggling as he mewed and gave her a lick back.

"Say, Musashi, do you believe in reincarnation?"

"No. Why do you ask?"

The Nyasu blinked his big green eyes sleepily. Giving a yawn, he snuggled under Musashi's chin, purring loudly. Alana's smiled tenderly at the pair, though Musashi didn't seem to notice. "Hm. No real reason." Her ears perked up as the familiar Sakamoto Maaya song drifted into the hallway. "Oh, Musashi, aren't you going to flip to the next one?"

"No, let it run through."

Alana, who had never had a chance to listen to the lyrics that Musashi used to despise, listened carefully to the soft, beautiful Japanese song:

_If I let go of your hand clasped in mine,  
With that, it would all probably come to an end right now.  
What I wanted to know, and even what hurts me—  
Even those were left undone.  
Even though I should want to wish  
For you to find happiness,  
I can't, I'm too immature.  
I wipe the tears, but they still keep flowing._

_Good-bye.  
I love you more than anyone else.  
Even more deeply than the sky.  
Don't cry. We'll meet again, right?  
But not being able to see you is something that only I know about_

_This fate that we've chosen...  
Someday you too will understand its true meaning.  
The treasure of memories that we've made  
Will always live on deep inside my heart.  
I thought it was a beautiful thing,  
The word called hope.  
In an almost painful embrace,  
I'm looking up at you_

_Thank you.  
I love you more than anyone else.  
Even more strongly than dreams.  
Hold me. Don't let go.  
But don't utter even a single thing...  
Don't cry. I love you.  
Even though we're separated far apart,  
I can still live with you._

Alana smiled again, blinking rapidly. "That's a beautiful song."

Musashi was crying, but there was a soft smile on her face. "Yes. I think it's one of my favorites."

* * *

**Japanese Glossary:**  
Tadaima: I'm home  
Okaeri: Welcome back  
Sayonara: Good-bye

**Credits: **Thanks to Sakamoto Maaya's "Hikari no Naka e," one night's unusual dream about an elevator to the afterlife, and far too many ghost episodes of _Secrets_ on the Travel Channel. There is no doubt that this fanfic could never have existed without all three of the above. :)


End file.
